


Unearth

by Ptrm_2403



Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Iron Man (Movies), Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Attempt at Humor, Bucky Barnes Is a Good Bro, Clint Barton is a child, Domestic Avengers, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Humor, Iron Dad, M/M, Multi, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Parent Steve Rogers, Parent Tony Stark, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Bucky Barnes, Protective Steve Rogers, Protective Tony Stark, Psychological Trauma, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-15
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2019-08-24 00:41:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 52,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16629593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ptrm_2403/pseuds/Ptrm_2403
Summary: Set two years after the whole debacle with Thanos, things have finally started to settle down. With less and less instances involving around a matter of universal security, the Avengers, as unbelievable as it may sound, found themselves more involved with their personal lives now than being the Earth's mightiest heroes.Of course, that doesn't mean that they have no care for the world anymore. So when Nick Fury graced them with a call regarding HYDRA, they were more than ecstatic to provide their assistance.Especially when HYDRA is holding a girl captive who disturbingly looks so much like Steve Rogers.





	1. When Fury Calls

**Author's Note:**

> Hey Guys! This is my first ever Avengers Fanfic. Let me know what you think!

Steve sat on the couch in the communal living room of the Avengers tower, his legs folded, one on top of the other. His dirty blonde hair was sticking at all angles as he did not bother to damp it down the moment he woke up. 

It's Sunday so that means team bonding day. Unless there's a matter of national security. Or international. Either way works.

"Somebody's eager today." Tony said as he passed a cup of black coffee to Steve. He lied down on the couch. His head cushioned against the arm rest while his feet automatically found their way on top of Steve's folded legs.

"If Clint ended up here first, he would have put on the next instalment of that movie." Steve replied, his face contorting with a grimace. He really didn't want to put himself through the pain of watching that again. Those are the kinds of things that make him question why he even bothered to save the world from ending.

"Yeah, I know. Human centipede isn't exactly my kind of flavour as well. So what are we gonna watch today? Please don't tell me it's one of those black and white movies released in the 1940's. Save those for Bucky." Tony pleaded, not taking his eyes off the Starktablet from where he was reviewing his latest project but Steve still saw the pout he was sporting from this angle.

"Save what for me?" Bucky grumbled; still drowsy from sleep and yawning his way to the open kitchen.

He popped a cookie in his mouth that he found sitting on the table top, not even caring that it was half eaten already. 

Maybe he didn't notice. His face lightened up in a small vibrant smile when he saw that there's left over coffee, still steaming from the pot. 

"Hey Stark, can you take a look on my arm later? There's something stuck in between the plates. I tried tinkering with it but the thing is too small. I can't take it out." Tony made a noise that Bucky took as a yes. He'd just drop by the workshop later on if Stark forgot about it.

Soon enough, Clint and Natasha joined them in the living room. Both of them were wearing oversized jumpers, more so on Natasha which highlighted her skinny legs even more. 

She sat herself down on the space between the coffee table and the couch, her knees drawn together to her chest while she cupped a mug of hot chocolate with her two hands. 

Clint on the other hand, decided to sprawl himself; stomach flat on the floor, while complaining about women and their barbaric way of waking people up.

"I slapped you on the cheek because you wouldn't stir. Be thankful I didn't splash you with cold water." Natasha flatly said after taking a sip of her hot chocolate. If somebody could pull off a scary look while being cute at the same time, it would be Natasha. 

"Whatever. At least everybody else here loves me. Ooooh, I smell bacon. Barnes! Give me some of those bacon strips you're eating." Clint shouted. 

Bucky just gave him a glare which Clint returned with a wiggle of his eyebrows. 

"Go get them yourself." Bucky replied with a huff then proceeded to step over Clint to sit himself beside Natasha.

"Grumpy." Clint commented but finally hauled himself up to get some breakfast.

"Where's Bruce?" Steve asked. Bruce was usually the one up early in the morning almost every day so Steve found it quite unusual that he's not in the common room yet. 

"Oh he's in SHIELD headquarters. He said that he needed to look something over. Research about bacterial DNA and stuff. Something about needing a second eye." Tony answered and set his StarkTablet on the coffee table. 

"So, are we gonna watch anytime soon?" Steve gave Tony a smile and squeezed his leg. 

"Friday, can you please put on The Hobbit? The first one."

"Of course, Captain Rogers."

"Thanks Friday." 

Immediately, the production logos started rolling and they all settled in. But Halfway through the movie, just when the dwarves and company was about to enter Rivendell, Steve's phone rang. 

He looked down and frowned. Fury doesn't usually call them on a Sunday unless there's an emergency. 

"Sorry guys. Don't bother pausing the movie." Steve gently placed Tony's feet on the couch. Tony  _definitely_  didn't whine on the loss of contact.

"Rogers." Steve answered as soon as he was in the kitchen, the sounds coming from the movie faint and unclear. 

"Captain Rogers. I apologise for calling on this day but I need people from your team for a mission briefing. It's HYDRA."

                                                                                        * * *

Nick Fury looked at the array of new information on the projector screen that Agent Coulson handed to him yesterday night. There seemed to be something fishy about the whole situation. He just couldn't point his finger at it. 

Upon the door squeaking open, he tore his gaze away from the screen to see Captain Rogers, Stark and Agent Romanoff striding in. 

"Good Afternoon, Sir." The Captain greeted him. 

They sat stiffly on the round table, all their attention centered towards the screen. Fury wasn't surprised with their reaction. Ever since the Avengers have defeated Thanos, Rogers and the Winter Soldier had been working with SHIELD to dismantle the remaining hydra base operations while the others offered mission support from time to time. 

As far as Fury knew, they had been successful. Hydra had been quiet for the past year and this had been the first time they've received intel pointing back to the said organisation.

"Gentlemen. Romanoff." Fury nodded his head as acknowledgement. 

"A hydra base facility was discovered in Detroit, Michigan. According to our agents, it is abandoned." He showed them photographs of the facility as he spoke. It resembled an old corporate office site that was built on the 1960s with about 10 floors. 

Fury noticed the way Captain Rogers was scrutinising the photos one by one.

"If I may Sir, what makes you think that this is actually a hydra base?" Fury raised his eyebrow at the question. With no further ado, he replaced the photos with a series of documents that shows a questionable and concerning set of data. 

Take the piece of a writing journal propped on the top left corner of the screen, for example. It contains some gruesome details of results that scientists have found regarding a 'subject'. Whether that pertains to a human subject or not, Fury didn't know. It probably is. Hence, why he called for this meeting.

"That journal entry dates back to just three days ago." Stark pointed out, quick as always.

"That's quite recent. You think Hydra's still using this place?" Romanoff, on the other hand, was quiet. Her restless eyes darted back and forth between the photos as she took in the specifics of each document. 

"Yes, exactly. These were found in one of the meeting rooms on the 8th floor. The site has been under constant monitoring right from when it was discovered by SHIELD agents. No unusual circumstances were reported. Just an ol' abandoned building in the eye of a normal citizen." Fury explained to answer Stark's question. 

"So what I want you to do is to find out how exactly Hydra is hiding itself from plain view. Gather as much information as you get. Remember that this will be a recon mission. If you encounter hydra agents, do not initiate contact. We will formulate a plan upon your arrival with the intel. You will leave this afternoon. Am I being clear?"

"Yes Sir." Captain Rogers answered.

                                                                                             * * *

Natasha lifted her gloved hand to adjust her earpiece so that it fitted snuggly inside the hollow of her ear. 

 _'Take the east wing, Nat.'_ Cap said once they've landed the quinjet in a secure landing site. 

So here she was, treading along a decrepit hallway; the sound of her heels clacking against the floor tiles echoed to fill the deafening silence. It was dark, only illuminated by the occasional rays of sunlight coming from rooms with doors ajar and windows opened. 

Each intake of her breath was controlled. So far, there doesn't seem to be anyone within this side of the facility but that didn't mean anything. In fact, it made the black widow even more alert. No place could be utterly quiet as a grave.

Natasha flipped her head to the side. She heard something squeak not far away from her. 

With her forefinger tucked readily against the trigger of a glock 26, she crept forward to the room where she thought she heard noise and pushed the door open. Inside, there were bunk beds covered in what supposed to be white but were now dusty grey plain linen. 

If one inspected more closely, you would notice the slightest hint of bloodstain in some of the beds, blurry and almost pink which resulted from a poor attempt of washing the evidence off. It could have been mistaken for some kind of discoloration. 

But that one looked recent. 

Natasha flipped open the cabinets which stood opposite the beds. They contained medical supplies. All freshly stocked.

Then there were _voices._ Natasha could hear a faint conversation taking place between five, if not four people, from a distance. 

Looking around, she found a vent opening secured by square plastic grilles situated at the top right corner of the room from where she was facing. Wasting no time, Natasha used a rickety wooden table as a leverage to prop herself up. 

She yanked the grilles out, carefully so, to minimise the noise to avoid giving her position away. With a grace of a cat, she slid inside the tube. It was big enough that it allowed her to crouch herself in. 

As long as she kept her shoulders squeezed forward, she would be able to navigate easily with no problems. The inner structure of the building was thin enough that it allowed her to hear the people talking. Without further stalling, Natasha followed where the direction of the voices lead.

"Hey fellas. I confirm that this place is definitely not abandoned." Tony heard Natasha whisper through the earpiece. "I've got some scientists here talking about some kind of project. I'm following them through the vents." 

How was he not surprised? Another day, another hydra project. 

No doubt that's probably related to the journal entry that Fury showed to them earlier this morning. 

"Good. Tell us when you get a solid location." Cap replied.

Tony had been tasked to create a detailed blueprint of the facility. So far, he had only gone through the west wing and most of the south wing. There had been a number of science labs and storage rooms that he had taken note off. Friday added them to the visual plan he had displayed on the monitor of his faceplate. 

The facility had some sort of a crucifix layout with other rooms branching out from the main wings but what putting Tony off was that none of the rooms contained evidence that screamed HYDRA. Maybe he was just not observant enough but from a civilian's perspective, this would definitely look like a normal office building. 

Almost  _too_ normal.

At the moment, Tony was in some kind of tech room. It was littered with rows of computers that look so outdated, it made him resist the urge to wince. Tony looked around. Not really sure what he was looking for, but he believed that he was skilled enough to notice something out of place and shouldn't be here. 

Sometimes, people get that feeling that something was just not right. Like, there's something that they're missing. That, right now, had been what was bugging him ever since he's started going through floor by floor in the west wing. 

He couldn't pinpoint what exactly was causing him to feel this way but it was putting him on edge. And he didn't like being on edge. It made him paranoid and shaky and hypervigilant. That always never end well.

To take his mind off the distraction, Tony decided to make use of his hands. He opened all the drawers visible from his position. 

Just to check if there was something important that might prove to be useful for the mission and hoo boy, would you look at that. There he found a blueprint located securely inside a hidden compartment in the drawer. 

Spreading it out and eyeing it for detail, Tony confirmed that this is indeed a blueprint of the facility as it looked very similar to what he had managed to procure just a few minutes ago. One thing he did notice though was that there's a few more storey levels beneath what was supposed to be the ground floor.

 "Friday, scan for any functioning signals within the facility." Tony ordered. 

"I detect radio and microwaves originating underground. Looks like it's blocked by a strong electromagnetic shielding too. Other than that, Nothing else Boss." 

_Damn. There's an underground facility._

Tony had been too focused figuring out a way to access the underground facility from the blueprint that he wouldn't have felt the presence of two hydra officers pointing their rifles at him if he didn't hear the crisp click of a trigger safety being unbuckled. 

Their eyes locked. 

With a quick flick of his wrist, Tony blasted the two officers down with his repulsors before they had the time to think of pulling the trigger. Both of them slammed hard enough against the concrete wall; he's pretty sure he heard their spines crack. 

"Tony, status report." Tucking the blueprint inside one of the weapons compartment of his suit, he exited the room. And sure, there were more officers coming down his way. All their rifles raised and ready to fire. 

"I've got people coming to get me, Cap. Don't know where they came from." Tony replied. 

There were too many of them. He had no choice but pull out a cannon to fire chunks of them. Fury's instruction about initiating contact be damned. There was no point maintaining the stealth status of the mission. 

"I'm on the same boat, Tones. I just happened to start putting them down quietly at first."

"That'll probably be my fault, guys. The scientists led me to an underground surveillance room. One of the cameras was showing Cap's location. I needed to get rid of them but I wasn't quick enough. One of them managed to push the alarm button before I nicked him in the neck." Tony heard Natasha's response lined with disdain because someone managed to get one up her. 

Boy, did they get sloppy. They all know full well to stay out of the cameras. Is this what staying around in the tower for a couple of months does to them? 

Tony found himself in the middle of the intersection and yeah, there are some hydra shits coming from all four directions. Now he's got bullets targeting him everywhere. Some of them bouncing against the armour with a metallic clang. 

He fired his repulsor beams. Left and right together first, before he twisted his waist to fire at the front and back. The nutjobs were hit straight to the chest with a resonant blare. The impact pushed them back to collide with the other officers behind them while all their weapons dropped down to the floor like a unified surrender.

The next thing Tony knew, he heard a series of consecutive grunts of pain accompanied by a familiar reverberating clang of a metal shield. Cap caught his shield back with his left hand. Looks like the west wing would be rapidly clearing. 

"You better hurry up, boys. You gotta see something quick. It's not pretty." Tony heard Natasha mutter through the earpiece. With his back turned away from where Cap was, Tony threw his mini missiles, the impact of the boom resonating through the hallways.

"Give us a minute."

                                                                                           * * *

It had been quite easy for Natasha to clear out the area she was in. As soon as the alarm system roared through the facility, she hacked through their systems to gather any intel she could find. Hydra officers were galloping outside but they were stupid enough not to actually check the inside of the surveillance room. 

Once Natasha decoded the encrypted protection, she found a daunting folder screaming the words "PROJECT: INFINITY" in red bold letters. Windows and windows of dated journals popped out of the screen. 

Hydra was keeping someone in captive. More specifically, a girl. Probably not older than 18 the most. This recon task had just turned to a rescue mission whether Fury liked it or not.

So now here she was in a lab room that only had non-combatant scientists who were hiding behind a panic room due to the alarm. She did not hesitate to grenade the entire place. She knew that the girl was imprisoned in a highly reinforced cell so there's no point trying to be careful not to harm civilians. Cap would probably burn this facility two times over anyway. 

Unfortunately, one of the scientists managed to survive the blow. He was kneeling, one side of his face burnt raw but he was laughing. His eyes were twinkling with malice. Natasha slowly crept forward towards him until her dagger was only an inch apart from his neck.

"You do not know what you're getting yourself into." He said in between puffs of his laugh. Natasha slashed his throat, blood spurting on her face. 

She felt something touch the side of her elbow before she even had the chance to put down her dagger. Being the trained assassin that she was, she swiftly twisted her waist with her armed hand slotting in place beside the man's jugular. 

"Easy, Nat. It's just me." Natasha lowered her weapon once she realised that she was about to cut Cap.

"Sorry."

Tony and Steve followed Natasha through the rubble where she showed them a vault door secured behind two layers of criss - crossing metal grilles. Natasha passed the pieces of documents she printed from the surveillance room to the Captain. 

His stance hardened, his gaze focused intently on the words spelt in every page. Deadly silent, he passed the documents back and bent the grilles apart open with his bare hands. Just enough that they could cut off the security wires, making the lockdown of the door to malfunction. 

With the sound of metal scraping against metal, the vault door parted open from the middle. 

"Natasha, Tell Fury we're bringing the girl in. I'm gonna get her to the quinjet. Tony, destroy the whole facility down once I get her to safety." 

And just before he was about to enter the vault, Cap added, "Make sure it goes boom."

Everybody was on the move.


	2. And There, She Goes

"She looks so young." Steve commented once the adrenaline of the team went down and the quinjet was 15 miles away from the facility. He and Tony were sitting opposite from each other; the girl still passed out on a stretcher in between them. 

Steve found her unconscious in the vault room. Her hands were shackled with thick heavy chains that it made it impossible for her to move without bruising her wrists. There was nothing but the dark and cold to accompany her in that prison. 

Looking down at her, Steve couldn't resist running his hand through her long wavy blonde hair. He didn't know why the urge to protect her felt so strong in his veins at the moment. 

It might be because she was so skinny, almost as thin as he was before he had the serum. She could have had a whole life ahead of her. If only he has done his job properly, hunting all those scumbags, this wouldn't have had happened to her. 

From the information he had seen from the file, psychological recovery would be a little rough her.

"She didn't even have a name, Steve." Tony snapped him away from his thoughts.

"There was also no record of relatives in that file nor any evident reason why hydra captured her. As far as I could tell, she's just a victim of hydra's experiments again." Steve agreed with him. 

They couldn't really grasp what the point of Project: Infinity was. A lot of experiments testing both her physical and mental capabilities had been done to her but they failed to see their significance. The whole procedure was just unusual and eerie. Not like the previous cases the team had seen. Almost like they were trying to get to know how her body works but were unsure on how to go about it. 

 "No doubt Fury will take her." Steve felt his blood boil just hearing that mere suggestion.

"No." Tony raised one eyebrow at Steve's apparent refusal. 

"We are not letting Fury take her. She'll end up in a situation no different from where she's been. SHIELD scientists would want to get at the bottom of those experiments. We will be no better than hydra if we let that happen." 

Steve saw Tony process these thoughts and nodded in agreement. He was glad that they both have the same perspective towards this situation. 

"Might as well take her to the tower then." 

Steve was very on board with that decision. Damn it all to hell if he was going to let her be imprisoned yet again, and it wasn't like they could sign her up for foster care either. They had no idea why Hydra wanted her and taking her to the tower would mean that the public would be safe in case she turns out to be hostile. 

If she does, then there's no better place for it to happen but the tower full of Avengers who are capable of subduing her. Until then, she'll have a life as normal as possible.

As soon as the quinjet landed on the SHIELD headquarters, Tony and Natasha went straight to Fury for a mission debrief and report. Steve, who did not feel up to fighting Fury about their decision, just went to the med bay to take the girl for a check-up. 

He actually did not think it was a good idea to have so many doctors around her so he asked Bruce if he could take a minute to come down to take a look at her after telling him about the mission.

"You do know I'm not that  _kind_ of doctor, right?" He asked. 

"I know, but you get why I'm asking you to do this." Bruce sighed and motioned for him to wheel the stretcher closer to him. Steve decided to sit on one of the chairs leaned against the wall while Bruce went onto checking any signs of injury. 

There were a few abrasions and bruises here and there but no serious ones. Nothing an antibiotic ointment and gauze could patch up. Just as about he was to open her eyes to check her irises, he saw the girl looking dead straight at him, observing him.

He froze in place, not wanting to cause the girl to freak out.

Bruce looked at the direction where Steve was and noticed that his shoulders straightened. He was sitting down but he was alert. Ready if the girl lashed out. She twisted her head around to take in her surroundings. Bruce saw her brow crunch in confusion before speaking. 

"You aren't with those people. Who are you? And where am I?" She murmured in a croaky voice. Bruce was thankful that she seemed to be in a fine condition considering that she could form normal sentences, despite clearly how sore her throat was.

Upon getting a full visual of her features, Bruce was taken by surprise with how much she resembled Steve. From the blonde of her hair down to the curve of her jaw.

"I am Dr Bruce Banner." Bruce said once he has gotten over with their resemblance. "That man over there is Steve Rogers. You're safe here with us." 

She tried to get up; twisting on her side to use her elbow to pull herself up. When she noticed that she couldn't support her own weight, she leaned against the metal support of the stretcher. Her eyes drifted to Steve sitting opposite to her where her stretcher was, assessing him up and down as if to identify whether he was a threat or not.

"I know you." She said. "You're Captain America. Saw you all over the news before with the Avengers." 

Steve was baffled with the way she was reacting. She did not seem scared or anything like that. Confused, yes, but she didn't even flinch when Bruce held her shoulders to steady her in a sitting position. 

"That's right. Could you tell us what your name is?" He asked, as gentle as possible so that it didn't feel like he was interrogating her. He saw her mouth open then close for a second.

"216." She answered. She didn't notice the way both men winced at her response.

"But I was called Ruby before."

  
* * *

Ruby had actually been conscious ever since she felt someone tug the chains off her wrist. Although she couldn't open her eyes, she was aware of what was happening despite remembering them a bit hazy. 

It was the stuff that those scientists usually inject to her. Put her body in a muscle paralysis but left her lucid to be able to hear and remember almost everything. Most of the time, it would wear off after she's counted until 1,561 but it could run over until she's reached 9,000. Today, she only reached up until 4,296 before she managed to open her eyes and saw Dr Banner's hand hovering inches away from her face. 

She knew she was safe. 

She's heard Steve and someone else talking about her when they were in some kind aircraft, but she found it hard that she's actually out of that place; with the help of the Avengers nonetheless. And even though she wasn't really going to trust anyone easily enough after what happened to her, she knew that they were good people. Perhaps, nothing bad would come back to bite her in the ass. 

After Ruby introduced herself to both of the men, Steve went back sitting on that corner a few metres away from the door, his eyes not leaving whatever Dr Banner was doing with her who was actually going on about how the mitochondria found in eukaryotes use to be independent organisms.

"Symbiogenesis, right?" Ruby chuckled at the surprised look that the doctor gave her. 

"Most kids usually just tune me out when I start on a lecture." He said as he wrapped the cuff of the sphygmomanometer around Ruby's exposed arm to measure her blood pressure. 

"Nah, I've read it somewhere before. I didn't really understand the whole thing but now that you've explained it, I think I get the gist of it." He gave her a small smile before continuing on with his facts. 

Not long after, he declared that Ruby was healthy overall, despite the fact that her blood sugar is quite lower than normal but that maybe because she hasn't eaten anything substantial ever since she was captured. 

As soon as she voiced that out, Steve's eyes widened in concern and asked Dr Banner when she could start eating some solid food. Unfortunately, she would have to retain a liquid diet for up until 2 weeks and gradually introduce solid food again as to not upset her stomach. At least, she wouldn't have to use a feeding tube.

Ruby decided not to tell Steve. By the way his face frowned in pity about the solid food thing, Ruby had a feeling that his reaction would be so much worse if he came to know that a feeding tube was forced down her throat from time to time.

Dr Banner went back to jotting down some notes on his record book about Ruby's health and she didn't know exactly what to say so she just kept quiet and pretended that the floor was very fascinating to look at. 

The room was filled with silence until it was broken by a knock on the door before it swung open to reveal Iron Man with a pile of clothes in his hands. His faceplate was down and Ruby took note the annoyed expression he was sporting.

"Fury didn't take it well?" Steve asked and Mr Stark just let out an exasperated noise before telling Steve that it was taken care of. 

Whatever that is. 

They whispered between each other, with their voices too soft for Ruby to hear. Mr Stark suddenly looked up and Ruby almost broke her neck when she tried to avert her gaze onto the window, embarrassed that she was caught staring at the two men.

"Hey, kid." Mr Stark greeted her while walking towards her. 

"What do you say you change out of those clothes, hmm?" Ruby looked down at the state of her garments. It wasn't exactly the thickest material out there and just until then, Ruby began to notice just how cold it was. 

"Thank you." She said as she accepted the set of clothes which consisted of undergarments and a pair of tracksuit. 

She began to strip her clothes but Mr Stark started with a disapproving tone. "Jesus Christ, kid, I didn't mean change here." 

Ruby immediately let go of the hem of her flimsy dress. She wanted to say that it really didn't bother to change in front of them. After all, the material of her dress was so poor that it might as well be see through. But Mr. Stark was already helping her stand and walk her to the bathroom.

Without wasting time, she immediately clothed herself and let out a happy sigh upon feeling the warmth it gave. Ruby took a good look of her face in the mirror. 

Zombie. That was the most accurate word someone could describe her right now. 

She was so pale even snow white would be ashamed. Her cheekbones were sticking out which emphasised how sunken her eyes even more.

Ruby saw her reflection force a smile.

 _"You're safe. You aren't in the Dark Room anymore. They got you out."_  She convinced herself before going back to the med bay. 

Ruby was actually hoping that Dr Banner would take so much time creating her medical profile because once he's finished, that's it. Mr Stark and Steve would leave her here and Dr Banner would probably pass her onto the next doctor. 

She might be out of that place but she got no home to come back to. She had no other relatives except for her parents. 

There was a fleeting moment when the thoughts of her mum and dad played in her memory, but she quickly pushed them back at the back of her mind. 

Who was going to take care of her now? 

Ruby was horrified when she thought about being put up for foster care. The idea of entrusting herself to some stranger sent unwelcomed chills crawling up her spine. Perhaps, she would just run away and live at the streets if she was lucky enough to escape social services. 

So imagine her surprise when Mr Stark told her that they were taking her  _home._  Home being the Avengers Tower.

Ruby never agreed so fast to anything throughout the whole 18 years of her existence. At least with Steve and Mr Stark, she knew she was safe. These were the people who saved her, after all. 

"If you're gonna stay in my Tower, might as well call me Tony, kid." Mr Stark, uh, Tony, said when Ruby expressed her gratitude.

  
* * *

The Tower was even more extravagant in person than how Ruby saw it in television. The glow of the Avengers symbol shone even brighter than the city lights. People clad in designer business suits buzzed in and out of the building. Some looking as if they were rushing to catch their train home whereas, others were content on walking slowly while chatting and drinking their coffees. Tony led them towards the private elevator. 

As soon as the doors closed, a feminine voice greeted them. "Hello Boss. Captain Rogers. I see that Miss Reid is with you. Would you like me to direct you to the penthouse or the communal floor?" 

Ruby startled when she heard her surname being called out. 

"Hey, Friday. This is Ruby. She will be staying with us in the Tower. Friday's an AI. She runs the whole building so anything you need, just tell her." Tony explained as he settled next to Steve.

"It is lovely to meet you Ruby." Friday said. 

"Likewise."

Once the AI took them into the penthouse, both Tony and Steve gave her the grand tour of the place. Ruby couldn't quite believe how massive the floor is. It had an urban modern interior design with a motif of black and oak brown. Right at the corner, there was a set of stairs that led to a mezzanine floor where the guest bedroom is. 

"This will be yours Ruby. The penthouse is my designated area. Steve is just one floor below us. Do you wanna see the communal floor?"

Ruby suddenly felt overwhelmed. She felt like everything is happening so fast at once. One moment she was freed from her captives, then now, Tony Stark was giving her a room like it's completely normal to have someone, who is basically a stranger, live in his tower. 

She just couldn't understand why they would do this at all. And if she agrees to take the room tonight, then how about tomorrow? The next day after that? Would she stay with them permanently?

 But she was nothing to them. 

Sooner or later, they would leave and then what will she do?

The physical and mental exhaustion must have shown in Ruby's face because before she could even reply to Tony's question, Steve intervened, "Maybe we could do that tomorrow?" He suggested. 

"It's already late, Tony. It's best for Ruby to get her rest." She sent Steve a grateful smile before nodding along in agreement with his idea. 

 "Okay, kid. Let me know if you need anything tonight, alright?" Tony said as he patted her hair and so she nodded once again to show that she understand.

"Good night." She murmured.

Both men gave her an affectionate smile before they walked out of the room.

After Ruby took off her shoes and carefully placed them beside the wardrobe, she hopped on the bed and couldn't contain the satisfied groan that came out of her mouth. It's been too long since she slept on a bed. She took a deep breath and immediately got a whiff of lavender and chamomile. 

Never would she ever take for granted the value of finer things in life.

So, she closed her eyes with the hope that the softness of the comforter hugged against her body would lull her to sleep, but when the dark filled her vision, she was back there. 

Back to where her captors were. 

Ruby opened her eyes and took several breaths to get her heart rate in control. Once more, she shut her eyes close but the scientists were back there again. Again and again she attempted to go to sleep. She made sure her lamp was turned on before she went to sleep, but it was still dark when she closes her eyes.

"Friday, where could I make some coffee?" Ruby thought that the AI wouldn't reply so now she felt silly for looking up the ceiling, but a second later Friday answered, "For your best interests, I should not really indulge you considering the late hour. However, given that I have detected an abnormal pattern of your heart rate earlier, perhaps being up and about would put you more at ease. Am I correct to assume that trying to sleep tonight gave you anxiety?" Ruby nodded, not really sure whether the AI managed to get her response.

"Then, I shall inform Mr Stark of –

"No! Please don't!" Ruby shouted, then instantly closed her mouth when she realised how loud that was. "I don't want to bother Tony any much more than I'm bothering him now. So please, Friday. Don't tell him. I know he's a very busy man and he can't afford to worry about some teenager who can't even go to sleep."

"Very well. Get on the elevator and I'll direct you to the communal floor." With her comforter draped around her shoulders, Ruby followed Friday's order. 

She went straight to the kitchen to find the coffee maker once she reached the said floor. Friday told her that the coffee beans were on the top right shelf and being the short person that she was, she needed to use a stool to reach it. After making her coffee, Ruby decided to pass time on the balcony. 

Maybe she could wait until sunrise before going back to her room.

The wind outside here was chilling, but she was content enough to have her comforter enveloped around her body like a cocoon, her mug placed on top of the table to her left. She looked at the stars that illuminated the night sky. 

In all honesty, she was scared, and she found it very frustrating especially since she knew that she's out of that place already and that Steve and Tony would keep her safe. But that was another thing that she was worried about. Ruby knew that this whole thing would be temporary. They could have dropped her off in an orphanage or just let SHIELD deal with her. 

Ruby knew that they would be out of her life sooner rather than later and she couldn't go through that all over again. She couldn't handle any more losses at all, and at the kindness that Steve and Tony was showing her, she has no doubt that she would easily get attached. 

One way or another.

"Couldn't sleep?" Ruby looked behind her shoulder. Steve leaned against the frame of the glass panel. It looked like he was woken up from his sleep considering that he was still in his pyjamas. 

"Nightmares." Steve smiled in sympathy and gestured whether he could join her to which Ruby nodded her approval. 

"I told Friday not to bother anyone. I'm sorry." She muttered guiltily before taking a sip of her coffee. 

"You told her not to tell Tony. I don't count." 

Ugh. Cheeky Friday.

They fell into a comfortable silence after that. Both of them just looked up the stars to which Ruby felt grateful. It brought her comfort to know that somebody was just there, with the whole purpose of just accompanying her.

"Steve?" Ruby asked in a small voice, still looking up as she mapped the different constellations she could find in the night sky.

"Hmm?"

"Why did you and Tony take me in?" Ruby asked, almost in a whisper. When she felt like Steve wasn't going to answer, she crooked her head to the side to look at him. 

He had an expression which Ruby couldn't really decipher. It was a mix of pure admiration with a hint of anger and rage. She didn't know why he had that face on but she immediately felt bad for asking him the question.

"My best friend, I call him Bucky because it's short for his second name that he doesn't like very much." Steve let out a small chuckle at the thought. "He was the one who looked after me ever since we were children. Even during the war, he still smacked my head silly whenever he thinks I'm gonna do something reckless." 

Ruby knew this story. She learnt all about it in her history lessons. James Buchannan Barnes. Excellent sniper, became prisoner of war along with his men in the 107th infantry regiment. It was how Steve Rogers became Captain America.

"Then, he died. Fell off the train and I couldn't do anything. Next thing I knew, I woke up in this century. A few years later, and there Bucky was. Alive and well with a left metal arm. Except he couldn't remember me at all. He was manipulated by Hydra, got his memories wiped to prevent any memories from his past to resurface. So I did everything I could to get him back. Tony was there too, as well as the other avengers. They understood that Bucky was under the influence of Hydra." Ruby couldn't help it, she all but dove to give Steve a tight hug; her head tucked under his chin. She could tell Steve was surprised because it took him a minute to eventually wrap his arms around her.

"So you see, in a way, you're like Bucky. I hope you didn't go through what happened to him, but both of you got captured by Hydra, except you're too much younger. You should have been out there doing whatever kids your age should be doing, not stuck in that place. So we had to take you in, keep you safe, you know? Just like we did Bucky."

"Thank you." Ruby said, her voice muffled since her face was still plastered against Steve's chest. She didn't know if she'll ever feel safe again, but wrapped in Steve's arms like this, it was as if she had her father again. 

Even for just a moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who's your favourite marvel ship?


	3. Behind Those Eyes

Right after Steve woke up, he decided to go down to Tony's workshop. He was actually pretty sure that being the stubborn pain in the ass that he was, Tony did not go up to his room to sleep, but instead settled on his couch down there just to finish whatever project he was working on at the moment. 

So, Steve approached the workshop with the intention of forcing Tony to go up his penthouse to get some proper sleep. If he can't, well, he would just stay there and sketch until Tony gets annoyed with his presence.

"Boss, Captain Rogers is asking for access to the workshop." Friday informed Tony. 

He just waved his hand frantically towards the direction of the entrance door because he didn't really want to lose his focus. One wrong move and he would need to start all over again. As soon as he managed to slot the little screw in position, Tony looked up to find Steve sitting on his couch; sketchbook already propped open on an empty page in his lap. 

"You do know you have access codes to the workshop, right?" Tony said before dropping his attention back to what he was doing. He really found Steve's current bedhead paired with a shirt two sizes smaller to be very dangerous. 

God, just imagine the headline for tomorrow's newspaper: " _Tony Stark can't keep his eyes of America's Golden Boy, burned his hand in the process."_

Jesus Christ.

"It's not polite for me to just barge in." Tony snorted. Only Steve would bother being polite when he was in front of the epitome of impoliteness himself. 

"Did you even sleep, Tones?" He gave a vague gesture to answer Steve's question. In all honesty, he can't actually remember if he did. Maybe he lied down on the couch for a few minutes then went back to work. 

Tony sighed when he felt Steve's glare burning, 10 meters away from him. 

"Can't sleep. I guess saving a girl from the hands of Hydra pulls on my heartstrings I didn't even know I had." Tony spent yesterday night in his workshop ordering clothes and whatever stuff teenagers need. 

Well, what he meant was that he called Pepper and told her that there's an 18 year old girl living with them so he needed her help to get supplies. As expected, that resulted in screams and shouts from his stunning but scary CEO. It ended with promises of dinner in the tower when he told her Ruby's story though, so it was all good. After sunrise, Friday informed Tony that the boxes had been delivered to the penthouse already.

"Ruby couldn't sleep last night either." Tony raised his eyebrows to urge Steve to continue. 

"Friday woke me up. She said that Ruby was in the balcony of the communal floor but didn't want you to know. I think she thinks she's being a burden. But I brought her up back to her room when she fell asleep on my arms after giving me a hug." Tony tried to hide his smile at the thought of Steve tucking the girl back to bed. It was surprisingly endearing.

Not a moment after, all the lights in the workshop suddenly broke out.

Both men were alert to their bones. Tony was already beckoning for his suit while Steve ran his eyes through the room, assessing for possible threat. 

"I apologise, Boss. I assure you that there is no incoming hostiles within a 10 mile radius of the tower. I am currently looking for a viable explanation to how the power supply in the tower had been shattered and I took the liberty to start our generators to account for the power outage in the meantime. However, I must inform you that it appears that the outage occurred roughly at the same time when Miss Reid had violently woke up screaming from a nightmare. She's asked for Captain Rogers and is on her way down to the workshop." Friday explained which brought both men in a relaxed stance, though the uncertainty of the cause of the outage did not escape their minds.

A few seconds in, Ruby came barging with panic-stricken eyes searching for Steve. Right then, Tony realised just how young the girl was. 

It reminded him of how Peter used to stay in the tower and often wake up in the middle of the night looking for him after the whole fiasco with Thanos.

She hurriedly approached the couch but came to stand just barely a metre away from Steve, as if she was asking for permission if she was allowed to sit next to him. It was only when Steve gave her a sincere and bright smile did she decide to curl up next to the Captain. 

She was facing him. Her arm and head rested against the back cushion with her knees drawn up to her chest, feet almost touching the edge of Steve's thigh. Barely a minute have passed and Ruby's breath started to even out, an indication that she had gone back to sleep. 

Soon enough, the power came back and both men did not have to speak out loud to voice out their mutual intention of providing Ruby the moments of peace she desperately needed.

  
* * *

It was the faint sound of lead scratching against paper and the soft clang of metal that Ruby woke up to. Steve's eyebrows were furrowed in concentration as he drew a stroke in his page whereas Tony was hunched over some kind of bar with a screwdriver in his left hand. 

A small whirring noise made her look to the side and was surprised to see a robot, almost as tall as she was in her sitting position, holding out a pair of... socks?

"Thank you." Ruby said softly as she accepted the socks from its claws. It was only when she put them on did the robot happily wheeled away from her and started sweeping the floor.

Ruby found herself smiling. It was shockingly cute.

"Looks like DUM-E likes you. Those two over there are Butterfingers and U. They're my bots, helps me around here." Tony told Ruby. She felt ashamed for just barging in his workshop without a word and proceeded to use his couch to sleep like she had the right to. 

"Uh, sorry for just coming into your workshop." The man just waved his hand frenziedly, still holding the screwdriver, as if to say that it was nothing to worry about. 

"Come in here whenever you want to. See Capsicle over there? He claimed his place on that couch like he owns it." Steve just gave out an audible snort on Tony's remark before putting down his pencil to look at Ruby.

"How are you feeling, sweetheart?" He asked, which made Ruby's heart swell from the concern that could be heard from his voice. 

"I'm fine." Both of them winced at the obvious lie but Ruby was thankful that Steve didn't comment about it. He just gave her a reassuring smile that she returned back with her own shy one.

Sensing the brooding silence that was sure to follow, Tony hastily made a suggestion. "Hey kid, you wanna go outside? There's this theme park in Brooklyn we could spend the day in if you want to?"

Ruby froze when she heard 'theme park'. 

She didn't really had a solid grasp of how long ago it was, perhaps two years ago, but she remembered being kidnapped by her captors in a theme park.

And her parents. 

Oh, the  _things_  they did to her parents.

Ruby swiftly replaced her frown with a smile, hoping that the two men did not notice it. So what if she goes back to a place similar where all the bad things started? That was over now. A theme park is just a theme park. No need to get paranoid now. Besides, she thought it was a good thing to do, right? Face your fears and all that shit. 

Plus, who was she to reject an offer coming from  _the_ Tony Stark himself?

"I'll go if Steve goes." Ruby negotiated. 

"You're going to Brooklyn. Think again if you think I'm gonna miss that for the world."

Surprisingly, entering the theme park went well. There were a few moments where Ruby thought she was going to have a panic attack which Tony seemed to notice, going by the fact that he kept asking,  _'You doing alright, kid?"._ Ruby nodded every single time.

Soon enough, the worry she felt was replaced with excitement. She's always loved theme parks when she was a kid. Both men were actually astonished with how Ruby's demeanour changed from withdrawn to ecstatic in barely a second. 

Dragging Steve and Tony to a shooting stall, Ruby pointed out to the big brown bear that could be won as a price.

"What do I need to do to get that?" Ruby asked the man.

"Knock all the eight towers down and it's all yours!" With a smug smile thinking that she could do it, Ruby didn't hesitate to pick up a gun and shoot. Each release of breath was in sync with every bullet she dropped. It didn't escape both Steve and Tony to take in the practiced stance she effortlessly fell into.She was on the last tower when Ruby lost her concentration and failed to knock it down. 

"Aw, shucks." Ruby pouted when she realised she didn't succeed, but then she remembered that she was literally with Captain America and Iron man themselves. 

So making her eyes pop as big as possible, Ruby turned to Tony and passed him the gun.

"Please?" He looked at Ruby, eyes widening as he took in her expression; her resemblance to Steve was utterly undeniable. The blonde hair and the blue eyes didn't help either.

"Oh my god, Steve! There's two of you now! No, you can't trick me with those puppy eyes!" He exclaimed while Steve just laughed at his misery.

"Please, please, please." 

In the end, Tony had no choice but to take the gun and shoot the towers. Ruby couldn't help letting out a loud,  _'Yes!'_ before she hugged tony and darted forward to claim the bear. Both men smiled at the obvious joy the teenager was sporting, thrilled that a simple life sized bear could turn her into a ball of bouncy energy. 

Tony took a mental note that maybe he could buy her a giant teddy bear next time. Perhaps, like the big bunny he got for Pepper. Tony nodded at himself, proud for being able to think of that. Yeah, he would definitely get her one.

"Thank you, Mr Moustache Man! I'll make sure to tell others about how wonderfully rigged your guns are!" Ruby shouted before she hurriedly dragged her companions away again.

Tony gave out a small laugh at her antics. Poor man.

"Where's Steve?" She asked, craning her head left and right, when she realised that only Tony was following her. Said man was found standing in front of an ice cream stand, then came back to them holding out three different flavours of ice cream cones. Ruby chose strawberry and Steve automatically handed Tony the mint chocolate chip one.

"You could have mine, if you don't like that one?" Steve suggested when he noticed Tony just staring at the ice cream. 

"No, it's alright. It's my favourite flavour." He replied as he took the sweet in his hand, smiling at the thought that Steve remembered what he likes.

"You guys are so cute." Ruby abruptly commented as she squealed, hugging her bear. 

"Shut up, kid. Go ride the carousel." Tony huffed, completely in denial of the heat he's feeling coming up his cheeks. But Ruby didn't hear his retort. She was already skipping her way down to the next ride she wanted to go on.

The day was spent looking at what different stalls had to offer, waiting in line for the next ride and smiling at the people who recognised Captain America and Iron Man because obviously, using NASA caps and sunglasses as a disguise could only avoid the public's prying eyes for so much. 

Thankfully, they didn't make a big fuss about it. Just a few,  _'can I have a picture, please?'_ Every time someone did that, Ruby had the brains to step away from them, trying to avoid the people to question her presence with the two Avengers. It wouldn't do any good if that went public and the press decides to stick their noses in. She was already a burden as it is, she didn't want to add more stress to their shoulders.

So all in all, Ruby enjoyed the day out. She thought that it was nice to get re-acquainted to the normal world again, to get to see the good stuff in life she thought she'll never see again.

Of course, this was the time fate chose to give her a panic attack. Ruby was sure that the sight of the Ferris wheel, combined with the presence of two large men dressed in a black soldier outfits was what triggered it to happen.

She abruptly stopped.

Her breathing turned more erratic when she clutched down the ground, burying her head in between her knees as she tried to zone out the harsh noises inhabiting the place.

_No, no, no! Stop!_

_"_ Kid, come on breathe." She heard someone say. 

There was a  _hand_  running down her back and Ruby couldn't bear the horror she felt. 

"Don't touch me!" 

Ruby felt her energy getting drained as second by second passed. Black spots surrounded her vision. Then, her head hit the asphalt with a resounding thump.

  
* * *

Tony did not expect the sudden burst of energy he felt after Ruby screamed. He looked over to where Steve was hunched behind the said girl and similar to him, he was forced back, stumbling a few metres behind. It didn't exactly hurt but its sharp shock caught them off guard. 

Both men didn't have time to ponder what all of that was about because as soon as they were able to regain their bearings, they saw Ruby unconscious on the ground. Steve immediately checked for her pulse before putting her in a recovery position, then called SHIELD to dispatch a medical team to their location.

 People were already gathering around them, trying to gossip about what happened, which really annoyed Steve who was so ready to tell them off in a not very nice way. As if sensing his irritation, Tony proceeded to dismiss the crowd away,"Alright, show's over people! Skittle along! Off you go." 

About 2 minutes later, the medical team arrived. Tony and Steve loaded Ruby on the stretcher and the staff hurriedly assessed her condition even before they had the chance to close the door. Ruby's left temple was bleeding which was immediately disinfected and dressed with gauze. Apart from that, Ruby appeared to be fine.

Steve released a breath he didn't notice he was holding in, then looked beside Tony to give him a reassuring smile.

It wasn't long before they reached the SHIELD headquarters. The staff rolled the still unconscious Ruby into the med bay and both men were advised to wait outside until they were called by the doctor. They took seats just opposite the room where Ruby was being examined. 

Then Tony remembered the moment just before Ruby fainted. He was quite sure that it was an electromagnetic force, originating from Ruby, which caused them to be thrown backwards. 

"Steve, I didn't just imagine that force from Ruby earlier right?" Steve sighed, eyes focused down on the floor as he contemplates the possibilities of the incident. "No. I felt it too. This could be one of the reasons why HYDRA had her."

"She could be a mutant. But her file didn't mention her having the X-Gene nor having any superhuman abilities." Tony dismissed the fleeting thought in his mind that this could be a result of inhumane experiments those HYDRA shitheads did to her. "It doesn't matter, but it looks like whatever ability she has, she has no control over it."

Their conversation was cut short when the doctor examining Ruby walked out of the room, "You can go see her now." Both men thanked the man and wasted no time before entering the room.

"Please, don't let them take me. Please." Their eyes snapped to Ruby upon hearing her plead with a choked up voice, tears wetting the pillow where her head was rested on. She was holding her hand out, trying to reach for the both of them. Her eyes were glazed, as if she did not really recognise who was with her.

 Steve, whose heart clenched at the display of vulnerability, enveloped her hand with both of his. "Hey, you're alright now, sweetheart. You're safe." He soothed as he ran his thumb back in forth her slender fingers hoping that she would find some comfort in that. Tony, on the other hand, opted to stand opposite Ruby. Smile in place to help her be at ease.

It took quite a while of murmured soothing before Ruby finally got her proper state of mind back.

"Steve? Tony?" She asked, confused. She tried to sit up but found that the left side of her head hurt, and when she reached up to touch it, she was unsettled to find a layer of gauze wrapped around it. 

"Hey, take it easy kid. You hit your head quite hard when you fainted." Ruby then remembered the theme park.

The Ferris wheel. The men in uniform. The panic attack.

Ruby suddenly felt a deep remorse for this. If only she has told them about her history with theme parks, then they wouldn't have to deal with taking her sorry ass back here in the med bay. God, just a day being in their custody and she's caused trouble for them already. 

Ruby swallowed down the shame, embarrassment and anxiety she was feeling and kept her face as blank as possible before asking, "Can we please go back to the tower?"

Tony gave her a small smile and nodded.

***

The drive back to the tower was spent in silence. Ruby was torn between whether she should just keep quiet or tell Tony and Steve the reason why she had a panic attack. Now that she's thought about it, she felt like they have the right to know considering that she would be staying with them for the mean time. At least if they knew her triggers, maybe she would give less stress to them. 

Ruby took a deep breath before clearing her throat, "They took me when I was in a theme park."

She didn't look at their eyes when she spoke. Instead, she kept gazing out of the car window, afraid that she would break down if she did. 

"My parents and I were queuing for the Ferris wheel. I was eating my cotton candy while my mum and dad were talking about how amazing I did in my science project the other day ago." Ruby's lip curled up in a bitter smile at the thought.

"Then, this man dressed in a black combat uniform told my dad that we needed to come with him. I couldn't remember why but all I know was that once he led us away from the public, more men came out. Three of them tied me all up, hands and feet, while I was kicking and screaming. The rest of them took hold of my parents. I saw my dad fighting but there were too many of them, you know?" Ruby wiped the single tear that ran down her cheek with the back of her hand, before turning her face to look at both men.

"It was my mum first. Knife to the hollow of her throat. But my dad was a fierce thing. Managed to take down quite a few, but as strong as he may be, he was still human. There was no way out of a bullet in his head." Tony and Steve felt a great sympathy for having Ruby witness her parents' death. They couldn't believe that behind those eyes was a tormented past no one at such a young age should have gone through.

"I didn't even get to say goodbye."

Reaching out, Tony squeezed Ruby's shoulder. He could understand that sense of regret. He loved his mum and although he never had a good relationship with Howard, he was still his father. 

Ruby looked at both men to give them a reassuring smile. "I'm okay now, though. That was two years ago."

Steve winced at the obvious lie. Of course, he didn't call her out for it. God knows, he didn't have the right when he himself was guilty of the same crime just after he woke up from the ice.


	4. The Voice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Shout out to those who subscribed, bookmarked and gave kudos to this story! Thank you, it means so much to me. Anyways, here's Chapter 4. Happy reading!

**"Ruby."**  A gentle, honeyed Voice called out for her. Its bright tone, contradicted the dark starless night sky that surrounded her field of vision. 

What is this place? 

**"Ruby."**  The Voice called again. This time, it was gentle; beguiling and coaxing her to follow wherever depths of this abyss led to.

With its constant harmonious humming as her guide, Ruby wove through the maze of rocks. The atmosphere was so thin that she needed to force her rib cage outwards just to get enough air through her lungs. 

The stench of rotting leaves and tree branches, made her cough all the way through until she found herself in a grassland. Only this one had more dead twigs and less green leaves.

In the middle of the field was a formless mist.

Its shine blazed with magnificence and underlying mystery. The closer Ruby went, the louder and higher its hum played. Then the melody all but stopped once she was just a mere foot away from it. 

Entranced, Ruby reached out a hand.

Streaks of mist entwined her arm like vines and to her amazement, they slowly began to take form. The mist configured into fingers, then into a hand that stretched and connected to, what Ruby was quite sure of, a female entity.

**"Oh how you've grown, my dear."**  The Voice murmured as she caressed Ruby's cheek, letting her touch fall down to her chin to tilt her head up. 

Ruby tried to figure out what or who was talking to her but it was too bright; she could only make out a faint outline of her face. She didn't understand why she spoke as if she's known her for a long time. Although even with this, she was quite astonished with how at ease she felt in her presence.

**"Who are you?"**  Ruby asked, but The Voice only chuckled at the question.

**"You will know soon, child. For the moment, it should suffice that you know I exist. Now, hurry along. Your companions had been worried about you."** As soon as Ruby heard these words, she woke up staring at the sky painted ceiling of her bedroom in the Stark Tower.

It has been three days, had she been staying cooped and locked up in her room ever since her panic attack. Both Steve and Tony had been knocking on her door twice a day just to check in but mostly it was Steve who always made sure she was eating by leaving a food tray outside the door.

Much to her demise, Ruby found it quite hard to continue denying now that nothing was wrong. The day out and the panic attack in the theme park was what she liked to refer to as her wake up call. 

Everything that had happened to her, from the kidnapping to being rescued had come back to her these past few days. Perhaps, what triggered this was the sudden realisation that she has seen and been through some shit, yet here she was. 

Yes, she's hurting, but still very much alive. Then, all sorts of questions plagued her mind but only one stood out: What was her purpose in life now?

Her constant wallowing had reminded her that she had lost everything. She lost 2 years of her life, her family and possibly even her identity. Ruby doubted that the Avengers would be willing to release her to the outside world using her real name.

She shook her head. 

_Your companions had been worried about you._  The Voice did say that, so enough of this negativity. Ruby thought that it was time for her to willingly accept that she would be in custody of the Avengers until she finds a safe new home. She may have got nothing now but at least she knew that she had these superheroes to watch her back, even if only for a while.

So with the intent of apologising to Steve and Tony for her behaviour for the previous days, she forced herself up from her bed to grab a yellow orange hoodie from the humungous set of clothes that Tony had delivered in her room. Once she put her hair in a messy bun, she jogged down the stairs toward the elevator.

But something in the back of her mind told her to go to Tony's bedroom first. Who knows? Maybe he was still sleeping in. It was only ten in the morning. Practicing what she was going to say, Ruby knocked and pushed the door wide open.

She wasn't fully prepared to be webbed against the back of a door that slammed shut as quickly as she opened it. "What the hell!"

"Who are you? Why are you in Mr. Stark's room?" A guy asked accusingly. His face was covered with a loose Spider Man mask which didn't really match the rest of his outfit: a lord of the rings hoodie and ripped jeans.

This couldn't be really Spider Man, right?

"Uh... I'm Ruby? I'm a Tolkien fan too." Ruby said as she nodded towards the hoodie he was wearing. The guy just looked at her, unimpressed.

Thankfully, Friday interrupted to decrease the amount of suspicion the guy was currently directing towards the girl."I apologise for not informing you, Spider Man, This is Miss Ruby Reid. She was rescued by the Avengers and is temporarily sheltered in the Tower."

"Right, I'm so sorry. Never could be too cautious nowadays. I'm Spider Man, by the way." He extended his hand to offer a handshake but awkwardly pulled it back away when he realised that Ruby was still webbed against the door.

"Mind taking your webs off me?"

"Yeah, about that, uh, it would dissolve in two hours." He replied as he scratched the back of his head guiltily. "Sorry."

Ruby rolled her eyes so hard, it looked like they would come out of their sockets but still gave a small smile to the guy. He didn't seem too bad.

"So, do you speak Khuzdul or Sindarin?"

  
* * *

Natasha was in the middle of squeezing the mix into the next batch of the cupcakes when Clint tried to sneak one into his mouth. Without even looking away from her work, Natasha slapped Clint's hand away before twisting it at an angle.

"Ow, ow, ow. Okay! Jesus Christ, Nat."  She released his arm from her grip  once she was content that Clint wouldn't try to steal anything away, "Those are for Bucky. Wait for yours."

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"

Both assassins snapped their necks to the source of the scream. To their amusement, Peter, with still his mask on, was running away from the girl rescued from the hydra facility a week ago. Apparently, her trauma was triggered after spending time with Tony and Steve in a theme park so they didn't really had the chance to meet her properly.

 It was actually quite surprising to see now that she was holding out a tarantula by one of its legs and taunting poor Peter that she would not hesitate to fling it to him.

"Natasha! Save me!" Peter jumped over the counter and hid behind Natasha, which looked absolutely ridiculous considering she was so much shorter and was holding a piping bag. 

Clint, who was very much afraid of spiders as well, was already pointing a frying pan towards the girl he wasn't yet introduced. He thought that it was probably rude, but she's holding out a spider!

Ruby suddenly realised that she was in front of two people she hasn't met before. The woman with platinum blonde hair was looking at her amused while the man with the frying pan was giving her his best judging face unashamedly.

"Could you pass me that pan, please?" Ruby asked and took the pan from the man with her free hand. After carefully setting the tarantula on the floor, Ruby immediately slammed the pan onto the spider to prevent it from crawling away.

"Sorry about that." Ruby smiled. "I'm Ruby."

"I'm Clint."

"Natasha."

Ruby found Natasha's voice quite familiar. Perhaps, she was there as well when the Avengers rescued her. She wondered if these two are part of the Avengers too.

 Oh well, not that it really mattered. 

What's important is that Ruby felt like she could trust these people, much like how she knew that she could trust Tony and Steve.

**'The blonde woman is Black Widow and that one's Hawkeye, just in case you're wondering, dear.'**

Ruby couldn't hold the gasp she let out upon suddenly hearing the Voice again.

"You alright?" Clint asked. "You look so confused."

"What? Uhm, no, no, I'm okay. I just can't believe I'm talking to the Black Widow and Hawkeye. Who knew I'll get to witness the Black Widow making cupcakes?" Ruby replied distractedly, still wondering if she actually heard the Voice from her dream or if she was hallucinating.

**'You're not hallucinating.'**

_'That's exactly what a hallucination would say.'_  Ruby thought back and decided to push back the Voice to one side. She could deal with her insanity later on. Right now, she just met two more of the Avengers and she really didn't want them to think that she's unstable.

"You want to help me out with the cupcakes?" Natasha asked both Ruby and Spider Man who didn't hesitate to get a piping bag as well. Ruby gave out a loud snort when Clint grumbled and complained about not being allowed to help when he's been there ever since Natasha started.

"Shoo." Natasha said as she checked one of the trays baking in the oven. "I'll give you one to taste test later." 

As soon as she said that, Clint lit up like a Christmas tree and happily galloped away towards the living room. Natasha clicked her tongue in pretend annoyance but the small curl of her lips didn't escape Ruby.

Spider Man was content filling the cupcake cups beside Ruby. She found him really interesting. Although she was quite disappointed that he didn't want to tell her his name yet, she understood why. Hell, she has trust issues as well. Plus, the guy was nice enough to fangirl with her about Lord of the Rings, Star Wars and Doctor Who. 

For now, she would just call him Spidey.

But what if his name was actually something silly? Ruby mentally cackled.

"Hey Spidey, since you can't tell me your name yet, can I call you Wilburforce?" The guy's left eye twitched at the name in apparent refusal.

"How about Gaylord?" Ruby said with a dramatic hair flick but Spidey just gave her an unamused stare. This is probably what Tony felt when he himself asked him stupid questions like this.

"Aww. You're no fun. How about we play a cupcake design competition, instead?" Ruby could already see his eyes twinkling at the suggestion despite the mask.

"Yeeees. I'm sure I'll beat you though so don't cry when I do."

"Uh please. It'll be your sorry ass crying later."

"Count me in or I'll poison the next batch of cupcakes." Natasha blankly stated with her hand already grasping a tray fresh from the oven. Ruby couldn't actually tell whether she was joking or not.

"Of course you can join too!These are your cupcakes in the first place!" Ruby replied back with an awkward laugh, and in a blink of an eye, her blank stare turned into a huge smile. "Yay! We can make Clint judge which one is the best." 

Ruby found herself wondering if Natasha has a bipolar attitude. 

"I'm a harsh judge! So don't waste my time!" Clint shouted from the living room where he was seated on the couch in front of the TV.

"The winner gets to have 2 more extra shares of cupcakes!" Spidey announced and everyone immediately started on their designs. Natasha chose to make a fox design while Spidey decided to just draw himself on the cupcake. Ruby can't actually think of someone who would like to eat a cupcake with their friend's face on it.

**'Try adding a little bit of the frost at the top.'**  The Voice commented again in the middle of Ruby icing her cupcake up. Still convinced that she was going crazy, Ruby paid it no attention and just proceeded in outlining some flowers.

**'Ignoring me won't do you any good, you know.'** Still refusing to acknowledge it, Ruby just continued her work.

**'I'm a part of you, dear. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you will be at peace'**

_'Shut up.'_

**'You and I could do so many things together!'**

'Shut. The. Hell. Up.'

**'We could do whatever we want!'**

"I said shut up!" Ruby didn't realise that she shouted that out loud until both Natasha and Spidey were both looking at her like she's gone crazy. The steel spatula she was using to mix more icing was split in half with how hard she squeezed it.

"Oh, don't mind me." Ruby said with a nervous chuckle. "I was just practicing my vocal projection. I said shut up!" She lamely repeated with an overly done British accent. "It was one of the lines of this TV series I used to watch." 

Natasha raised an eyebrow at her lie but chose not to comment on it. Instead, she took the broken spatula out of Ruby's hand and casually replaced it with a new one.

With no more words exchanged between them, all the three of them continued with their work. Once all of the cupcakes had been iced, Spidey placed the 3 main ones with their designs on a separate tray and shouted for Clint to come in the kitchen.

"Where's my cupcakes at? Oh look at these cuties." Clint excitedly reached out when he saw Spider Man offering him the tray.

"Which one has the best design?" Natasha asked and Clint looked at each one as if it was a life or death situation and one wrong decision could result to hell all over. With one final look, Clint reached for the cupcake with a tree and leaf design.

"I like this one the best. But the fox one is cute too."

"Ooooh, Spidey! Can you smell that from the air? It smells like failure." Ruby teased and shared a high five with Natasha who patted Spidey's back in consolation.

"But Clint, come on! That one had my mask on it! That was the coolest one! Not everybody could say they ate out Spider Man!" 

Everybody raised an eyebrow at his last sentence.

"That came out wrong, didn't it?"

"Don't worry, I'll share half a cupcake of my extra ones with you." Spidey faked laughed at Ruby's poor attempt of saving his face but Clint and Natasha were already sharing a hearty laugh over him. Well more like Clint literally laughing his ass on the floor while Natasha's eyes glinted with amusement as she gave out a little snort.

"What has got Legolas wheezing over like an air deprived chipmunk?" All of their attention turned towards the source of the voice. Tony was walking towards the couch with Steve in tow.

"Just your protégé being himself." Natasha explained. Steve and Tony didn't even bother to clarify what it meant.

Ruby suddenly felt quite ashamed and embarrassed to face them. It has been three days since the incident from the theme park and not once has she expressed her gratitude for trying to make her feel welcomed nor did she apologise for causing them trouble. She just basically stormed in her room and locked herself up straight away after the drive home.

**'Just go over to them and apologise. They would understand.'**

Ruby tried to resist rolling her eyes from hearing The Voice again. She really can't fathom how she's going insane to the point that her own thoughts were having a voice of its own. Despite not liking the fact that she was hearing a voice in her head, Ruby still followed its advice.

"Hi Steve, hi Tony." Ruby greeted as she stood awkwardly in front of them.

"Hey kiddo. Glad you finally decided to join us." Tony acknowledged her while he patted the space next to him to make Ruby sit down.

"I see you've met Natasha and Clint." Steve commented and Ruby couldn't help to snort. "Yeah, they're quite a pair."

Looking down on the floor, Ruby collected her thoughts and raised her chin up once she managed to figure out how to say her apology.

"Tony, Steve, I'm really sorry about my behaviour for the last few days. It was very rude of me to just lock myself up when you didn't even have to give me a room in your tower. Thanks for taking me to the theme park as well. It was really nice of you to do that." Ruby said while looking straight into their eyes in the hope that they would see how sincere she was.

"Don't worry yourself over that, Ruby. It's alright." Steve replied with a comforting smile. 

Tony wanted to call her out for saying thank you about taking her to the theme park because he believed that it was basically his fault that Ruby had a panic attack. If he didn't suggest to go to that damn theme park, Ruby wouldn't have to relieve traumatic events in her life.

Tony pushed his thoughts aside for now, though. The kid finally emerged from her room and he didn't want to ruin it. Especially when he saw how much she was laughing together with Natasha earlier.

Clint, who was watching the scene along with Natasha and Spidey, sensed that these three idiots would probably fall into a very awkward silence afterwards. Tony and Steve were not really a prime example of people who can speak out their feelings. So being the almighty saviour that he is, he took the monopoly set placed underneath the coffee table.

"Who wants to play Monopoly?"

Hours and hours later, Ruby found herself becoming ridiculously bankrupt after getting her money milked by Tony and Natasha. Tony had hotels on both Park Place and Boardwalk while Natasha had three houses on each of the green ones. She has been so unlucky as well after landing on the Luxury Tax numerous times.

"Clint, trade your Atlantic Avenue with my waterworks and I'll let you know why you can't get past my technique when we spar." Natasha bribed but Clint wasn't persuaded. She huffed but still draped her legs into Clint's lap. 

In all honesty, Ruby found their dynamic really endearing. With the short time that she's known both of them, she could already see how Natasha may seem a bit cold at first but is probably an affectionate person. She just shows it in a different way. Clint may look quite childish but Ruby has seen the way he carries himself with confidence and conviction around Natasha and everyone else.

"Guys, sorry for being a kill joy but I've got to go now. Aunt May is gonna kill me. I still have an essay due tomorrow for University." Spidey whined. 

Clint pushed the board game over while everyone threw their title deed cards towards his direction for ruining the game. Ruby watched amusedly as Spidey tried to shield himself with his hands to no avail.

"You could have continued the game! Just put back my title deeds up for sale!" He answered.

"Don't you sass us now Peter!" Ruby's eyes twinkled when Tony unconsciously slipped out Peter's name.

"So you're a Peter, huh? I would have thought you're more like a Tom, or maybe Andrew." Spidey, or shall Ruby say, Peter, looked at her like she's grown two heads and then stared at Tony accusingly but softened his gaze a minute later.

It wasn't like it's a big deal that Ruby knew his name. He would have just preferred it if he could have known her better in time before introducing his secret identity. There's a lot of Peters out there after all.

"I'll be back next week to work my new suit adjustments with you, Mr Stark." Peter said as he gathered his things and took a few more cupcakes in his bags. Tony nodded his head to acknowledge him and Peter said his goodbyes to everyone.

"Bye, Peter! Next time, we should totally watch Lord of the Rings together." Ruby said as he hopped in the elevator.

"Uhm, yeah sure. That'll be nice, Ruby." He replied just in time before the elevator doors closed.

**'He's a bit cute, isn't he?'**  

Ruby sighed and scratched her head in frustration.

Now, how does one deal with the Voice in their head?


	5. The Winter Chipmunk

A startling alarm suddenly blared through 20 minutes after Peter just left the tower. Ruby was so confused to see everyone rushing through the elevator. Their stance and posture were rigid and screamed of practiced discipline. With no clue of what to do, Ruby just followed them in.

She was surprised to see Dr Banner inside the elevator already.

"That was a signal that the Director of SHIELD needs us in the headquarters. If it's alright with Cap and Tony, I wouldn't mind staying in the tower with you. I assume you'd like company rather than being alone?" Ruby felt touched that the doctor actually thought of her well-being. However, she didn't want to damn the nice man into babysitting duties. She wasn't a child anymore, she didn't need constant adult supervision. And the tower is the safest place she could ever be.

What could go wrong?

"Thank you for that Bruce, but we might need the Hulk. We'll decide who will stay with Ruby once Fury informed us of the situation."

Ruby looked at the doctor with astonishment.

He was the freaking Hulk? Ruby wouldn't be able to guess that from his calm demeanour at all. The man is enveloped with a serene aura in the two times she's met him. 

One by one, the Avengers got off to their corresponding floors to collect their necessary weapons and equipment. When it was time for Steve to leave, he lightly patted Ruby's head.

"You'll be alright in here?" He asked. Ruby nodded and Steve gave her a smile before stepping out of the elevator. 

Not long after, Ruby and Tony reached the penthouse. For some reason, Ruby was getting this strange feeling about both Tony and Steve being very far away from her and placing themselves in a probably dangerous situation.

What if something went wrong with them?

Or worse, what if they die too, just like her parents?

So like a lost puppy, she followed Tony around and leaned herself against his doorway as she watch him prepare and pick up his arc reactor.

"We'll only be gone for a few hours. If not by tonight, we'll be back tomorrow. If you need anything, just ask Friday." Tony said and he must have seen something fleet across Ruby's face because his expression softened. 

"Don't worry, kiddo. We're the Avengers. This is our thing. I'm sure we'll be fine. I'll see if I could send someone home to keep you company here." Tony reassured her as he clasped her shoulder comfortingly.

Ruby smiled at him but she shook her head no.

"I'm going to be fine here alone. I don't want to be the reason why the Avengers were lacking man power for a mission just to take care of a teenager. And just like you said, I got Friday."

Tony shrugged his shoulders and agreed with her. If that was what she wants, then so be it. He already programmed a few protocols into Friday anyway to make sure of Ruby's safety when they're not around. He was confident that Ruby will just be fine for a few hours.

"Just make sure that everything's cleaned before we get home if you decide to host a party in here." Ruby chuckled at Tony's joke while shaking her head.

"Go kick some ass."

Tony gave her a salute and entered the elevator to meet up with the rest of his team.

***

"Hello, Miss Reid. I'd like to inform you that the Avengers has left just now." Friday said. "If you would like to know their whereabouts at any time, please do not hesitate to ask me." Ruby nodded her head which she assumed Friday saw because the AI did not say anything afterwards.

Now, what could she do? It was only five in the afternoon and it was way too early for her to get dinner.

**'How about you do some reading, dear?'**

"How about we agree you never talk to me? Dear." Ruby replied sarcastically, knowing full well that she was speaking out loud. Nobody's here so she's not at risk of being called deranged, insane and mentally unstable.

 **'I'm not your enemy, Ruby. I'm on your side.'** The Voice said but no matter what it says, Ruby would never ever believe that it's real. She understood that hearing voices in the head is a sign of some kind of mental health problem. So as long she could still differentiate between what's real or not, she'll be fine.

No need to tell anyone about it.

**'I am real. You just don't realise it yet. There is a lot that you still have no knowledge about, Ruby. If you let me in, there will be countless possibilities waiting for you.'**

Ruby ignored what the Voice just said but she did like her suggestion about doing some reading. Having finished high school at the age of 16, she should have been at her second year of university in the UK, doing just as she has planned with her parents. 

With a sigh, Ruby asked Friday if there was a library anywhere in the tower. Thankfully, there was one in the communal floor just across from the living room.

As expected from  _the_  Tony Stark, the home library was extravagant yet cosy. The entirety of the walls was covered with dark built-in mahogany bookshelves. The wooden floor matched the colour of the shelves and slightly to the left, was a 4 piece beige sectional sofa which faced the full panel glass windows that led to a balcony where one could see the skyline of New York City.

Being the book lover that she was, Ruby excitedly looked through the many titles in the collection. She was absolutely pleased to find that there was a huge section for fiction fit for her age.

Tony probably had it for Peter.

However, as much as she loved reading Rowling's and Riordan's works, Ruby decided to pick up a book about Molecular Biology. With the book clutched in her hand, the teenager sauntered towards the sofa and lied on her stomach with her elbows supporting herself up as she read.

She didn't notice that it was already half past nine until the dim lights startled her when they automatically lit up. Yawning, she stretched her arms and proceeded to place the book back to its shelf.  She just turned the lights off and was in the middle of getting another book to keep in her bedroom when she heard a loud thump and what sounded like a hurt grunt coming from the balcony.

Her neck quickly snapped towards the sound.

Tony and Steve would have told Friday to inform her if they were already back and even then, they wouldn't use the library balcony to come in. 

Knowing full well that the darkness was surrounding her, Ruby tried her best to swallow the anxiety that was coming up from the surface while waiting for her vision to adjust to the low light intensity.

**'Deep breaths, Ruby. You aren't in the Dark Room anymore.'**

_'Shut up. I don't need a voice in my head right now.'_

With her resolve as hard as steel, Ruby took the short three-legged stool just beside the sofa. She crept slowly towards the balcony door and reached out for the lock on the side of the glass door. Taking a deep breath to control her blistering heartbeat, Ruby quickly slid open the door and pointed the stool to the intruder.

"Stay right where you are!" She shouted as she took in the appearance of said intruder.

He was huge. Almost as large as Steve but he was leaner. He was clad in a black tactical vest and was crouching against the wall with his dark metal arm pressing hard against the side of his stomach which as far as Ruby could see, was leaking with blood.

Hold on, he has a metal arm?

Holy shit! This was Steve's best friend!

Immediately, Ruby dropped the stool and rushed to help him support his weight.

"What the hell? When they said you looked like Steve, I didn't know they meant that you were his clone." Bucky said as Ruby took his flesh arm and placed it around her shoulder to help him walk. 

She gave him a confused look at his comment. Contrary to what he said, she believed that she didn't look  _exactly_  like Steve.

Well, okay, she did have the same ocean blue eyes and same dirty blonde hair but that was it.

"Ruby, right?" She realised that the injured man knew about her rescue. Instead of answering him, she opened the glass door and helped him lie down on the sofa. She quickly asked Friday to tell her where the nearest first aid kit is and was glad to know that she didn't have to travel many floors down just to get one.

"What happened to you?" Ruby asked Bucky as she cut open his vest to reveal his wound. Looking at it, she hypothesised that this was most probably a knife wound. It was quite large but not deep enough to consider it life threatening so she knew that she only had to disinfect it and sew it up. It also looked like that Bucky got the bleeding under control as it was very slowly coming to a stop.

"You don't wanna know, kid." Bucky replied as he groaned when the girl poured saline solution to irrigate the wound. "You don't need to do this, either. My healing factor would take care of it and in a few hours I'll be good as new."

"Yes, but doing this will speed the healing process up. You didn't have the wound exposed to air for more than 6 hours, did you?" Bucky shook his head no and he didn't really had to ask why the girl seemed to know what she was doing as she started to suture.

He has seen her file when the team rescued her from HYDRA. There had been so many circumstances where their ' _activities'_ forced the poor girl to tend her own wounds. But at least, they didn't leave her bleeding to death on the floor. After learning about what happened to her, Bucky didn't hesitate when Fury gave him an assignment to hunt down any possible facilities hiding in different locations if there was more. 

_Fucking hydra shits._

He wasn't supposed to be back until two weeks from now but he lost quite a lot of blood and in need of enough time to recuperate. He didn't quite expect to find the girl alone in the library either when he came home.

"You know, normal people use the main entrance when entering the tower." Ruby commented once she has finished sewing the wound up. She quickly gathered the equipment she used and dropped them to the basin. She'll sterilise them later on once she's gotten rid of the blood stain of the carpet and the sofa.

Lord knows Tony will have a fit if he sees that.

"The library is always empty except weekends when Peter stays here overnight, so I know I wouldn't run the risk of seeing Stevie with my wounds. That man is a mother hen." Bucky explained which made Ruby chuckle, but considering the little facts she knew about what these two men had been through together, she understood where Steve was coming from. If her best friend died and came back alive, she would have a hard time letting them out of sight too, let alone sending them alone to solo missions. 

With a smile, Ruby let the man have his rest while she headed to the kitchen to get some liquid detergent and a sponge. She went ahead to get rid of the blood stains on the carpet as quietly as possible so she didn't disturb Bucky in his rest. She knew he wasn't actually sleeping because she could still hear his irregular breathing pattern but providing some peace and serenity once in a while wasn't too hard of a task to do.

It didn't take long for her to get rid of the blood stains and soon she found herself reading again. This time, she was sprawled stomach flat on the carpet. Going to bed now would only mean that she would spend hours and hours of tossing around in the bed trying to sleep just like what happened in the past few days. So, she decided to just tire herself out reading until she can't fight sleep anymore.

**'Just go to bed, dear. I wouldn't let anything bad happen to you.'**

"Oh my god. Listen, I don't know why you keep popping in my head but you're not real. I'm afraid of the dark and I'm pretty sure I'm becoming insomniac too so I don't want the thought of myself going insane being thrown in the mix. Leave me the heck alone, capisce?" Ruby hissed in a fierce whisper.

"Who are you talking to?"

Ruby's eyes snapped to Bucky who was already sitting up and testing his mobility around his wound. The torn flesh was slowly healing itself up and the pain just felt like a dull throb now.

"Huh? No one." She glanced down to the book she was reading and gave Bucky an innocent smile. "I was just reading out loud the dialogue from this book."

Bucky looked unsatisfied and distrustful at her answer but thankfully he didn't press it. He just gave Ruby a knowing stare and said "Okay." before standing up and proceeded to walk out of the door.

"Everyone's out in a mission, then?" He asked without looking back, knowing that Ruby was following him out anyway.

What was she supposed to do? She just can't ignore him and lock herself up reading in her room when there's a human being she just met and is most likely going to be one of the people she'll spend most of her time with in this new life of hers.

It was just a bit rude.

Ruby nodded yes to his question. "Are you hungry? It looks like you are. We made cupcakes earlier if you want." She asked politely but Bucky just shook his head at her question. "I should be the one asking you that. Look at you, you're a twig! I'll bet Clint's ass you didn't even have dinner yet."

"And if I said I did, what will you do to Clint's ass?" Ruby teased while wiggling her right eyebrow.

"That's for me to know and for you not to find out." He winked and then proceeded to open up all the cupboards he could place his hands on to find whatever ingredients he could have in this kitchen.

In the end, all he found was loaf bread, chicken breast and some lettuce.

"Chicken sandwich sounds good to you?"

In all honesty, Ruby couldn't even complain if it wasn't, not that he she didn't like it. It's just that the guy came home injured and then decided to fix her some food.

Who even does that?

So being as polite as she could be, she just seated herself on the counter and gave him a smile while nodding. Bucky saw the cupcakes the girl was talking about and Ruby's eyes almost popped out of her socket when she saw him eat a whole piece in one go. 

Imagine what people would think if they hear a random teenage girl tell them that she once saw the Winter Soldier cooking chicken in his tactical vest while his mouth was stuffed like a chipmunk with a whole cupcake.

Huh, would that mean he'll be called the Winter Chipmunk?

God, even herself thought she sounded crazy.

**'For the love of all that's holy, I'm telling you that you are not insane Ruby!"**

_'_ _Oh yeah? So I'm not just making up some stupid auditory hallucinations to cope up with my trauma and you're, you're what? Some kind of psychic who I'm supposed to believe? Give me a break!'_

Bucky sat down in front of her and slid a plate of chicken sandwich. He gestured for her to eat and Ruby didn't hesitate to dig in especially after hearing her stomach grumble. She wasn't actually supposed to eat solid food yet but Steve nor Tony wasn't here and Bucky didn't know about that.

After a few moments, Ruby wiped her mouth from side to side when she noticed that Bucky was staring intently at her and truth be told, it was actually kind of scary.

"Is there something wrong with my face?"

"You're hearing voices, aren't you?" The blatant way he asked the question made Ruby choke on her sandwich. She got no idea how the hell he was able to figure that out. 

Swallowing the chicken in her mouth and clearing her throat, Ruby straightened her posture in attempt of showing that she was still very much stable before answering his question.

"Uhm, yes I am. But it's just one voice actually."

**'Tell him you know you're not insane.'**

_'_ _Not really the time. Shut up.'_

 _"_ Please don't tell anyone. I don't want to be sent to a mental hospital." Ruby pleaded nicely with a smile.

Bucky just chuckled. "I'm not judging." He said as he took his plate to the sink to wash it off. "Everybody here is a little bit unstable if you think about it."

Ruby thanked all the saints she could name in her head for Bucky not calling her crazy. She herself believed that she was already treading on the path of being borderline insane but it was nice to see someone not getting hanged up too much on semantics.

"I promise to keep your little secret if you promise that you'll come to me when it gets too much. Deal?" Bucky's lips twitched into a smile when he saw her nod in defeat. At that moment, she looked so much like Steve back in 1935 when he caught him lying red-handed about getting pummeled and punching people. Again.

Bucky couldn't help it and he just had to reach out to ruffle her hair.

"Come on. I'll show you to my favourite part of the tower."

Ruby ended up following Bucky to the gym. She thought that they'll probably start working out or something like that, but when Bucky basically ignored all of the equipment in there and went straight through a door just in the corner, Ruby couldn't exactly deny that it didn't pique her curiosity.

Unlocking the door open, it revealed a massive parkour training room.

Ruby couldn't hold the squeal she tried to contain.

"This is so cool!" Ruby exclaimed. She started learning Parkour with her father when she was, Ruby believed, at the age of ten? The memory was quite hazy but she remembered that they never got really deep into the training."Do you mind if I run through the course with you?"

Bucky couldn't really say no when she flashed those big blue eyes at him in expectant hope. He was pretty sure that he should assess Ruby's endurance first before letting her run free but she was already climbing up the obstacles. 

Bucky's grin widened before he started running too.

He touched Ruby's shoulder as he went past her, climbing the same obstacle she was at, faster than she could register it. "You're it!" Ruby's mouth gaped open in disbelief as she watched Bucky run ahead of her.

"That's unfair!" Bucky was enhanced! There was no way she would be able to tag him.

But damn it if she wasn't competitive. No way in hell is she just going to stand here gaping like a dying fish. With a hard steel motivation, she pushed herself up and gave it her best to pursue Bucky.

Ruby couldn't remember the last time she felt so free like this, smiling to the point that she would almost rip her cheeks. The rush of adrenaline made her forget every single worry she had in the world. Right now, all she was focused on was the combined sound of their gasping breaths and the excited thumps of their feet.

When Bucky looked back to see where Ruby was at, he was quite surprised to see that she was actually gaining on him. Given, he wasn't using his enhanced abilities but even without it, he was still quite fast enough than average people with his military training. 

Impressed with Ruby's endurance, Bucky gave her a lopsided grin before jumping across a higher block.

"Damn it!" Ruby's fingers were so close to touching the side of his arm! The block Bucky was on was too far away for her to jump but if she didn't, she would have to go around and that would give Bucky so much time to get away from her. 

Assessing whether she could make it or not, Ruby made up her mind to just jump across.

 **'This isn't a good idea, Ruby.'** The Voice warned.

_'Guess we'll never know till I try, yeah?'_

Ruby smirked up at Bucky as she jumped but soon enough, her face contorted into full blown panic when she realised that she was actually falling down face first. In an attempt to soften the blow, Ruby tried to manoeuvre herself mid-air into a landing position but she wasn't quick enough and fell painfully on her right foot first.

Ruby was pretty sure she felt her ankle crack in a sudden attempt of supporting her weight but her scream of pain was muffled when her face hit the mattress she fell into.

 **'I told you! Now you listen to me and place your hand over your ankle!'** The voice ordered.  **'Quickly!'**

Ruby was in so much pain that she didn't protest against the Voice anymore and just followed what she said. She was so surprised, entranced and confused all at the same time to see a faint but fiery glow of orange incandescence coming from her hand.

 **'Never doubt me again when I tell you I'm real.'** The Voice said and when she looked down for the second time, the glow in her hand was nowhere to be seen. She tried to rotate her ankle slowly but was really bewildered when she felt no pain whatsoever at all.

_What the actual fuck?_

Ruby didn't have time to talk to the Voice because she could already see Bucky coming towards her with a concerned face. 

Remembering that they were actually playing tag, Ruby quickly pretended that she was so much in pain as she dramatically howled while clutching her leg.

"Hey kid, what's wrong?" He asked as he crouched down right next to Ruby. "God damn it, Steve will kill me." 

Ruby chuckled at his comment seeing that he was clearly worried about the situation. She felt bad but a game is a game, so Ruby clutched at his shoulder and leaned closer to whisper in his ear, "You're it now. I wasn't actually hurt."

"You little punk." 

As swiftly as she could, Ruby shoved Bucky aside to stand up and ran for her life while laughing out loud, knowing that he would definitely get her back at her little trick.

Their game was cut off short when Friday interrupted to inform them that the team would be arriving in the tower from their mission in less than five minutes. Ruby abruptly stopped running when she remembered something.

"Oh my God, Bucky." She gasped.

"What?"

"The tools I used to tend to your injury are still in the kitchen sink. Of the communal room." Bucky's eyes widened at what Ruby just said. 

He knew that the team would go straight to the kitchen because they always turn into hungry hyenas after a mission.

Which means Steve and Natasha finding out that he was injured.

That would only mean getting him to sit down in his room with both of them interrogating him about what happened in his mission like the worrywarts they both were.

Damn it.

"I'll give you fifty bucks if you don't tell anyone about my injury."

"But how are you gonna explain why you're already home?" Ruby asked. 

Double damn it.


	6. What They Could Be

Both Ruby and Bucky came into the communal room to see everyone lounging, suits still on, while sharing eight boxes of pizza. Bruce was lying down on the recliner chair with his eyes closed as he chew on his slice. Natasha was throwing black olives to Clint who was sitting on the opposite side of the couch, catching them with his mouth. Tony was leaning on the bar counter with his face plate down , chugging down a glass of scotch while watching Steve devour four slices of pizza in two minutes.

It would actually never cease to amaze Tony just how much Steve eats.

"You guys are having a party and didn't even invite us? Such a disgrace." Bucky nonchalantly teased as he walked towards the centre table to grab himself a giant slice of pepperoni pizza.

Everybody's attention fixated on him.

They were all surprised to find him home since they knew that Fury gave him quite a hefty mission to finish. Natasha's eyes narrowed as she looked at Bucky. There was no reason why he would come home unless he was injured in the middle of a mission. It also looked like Steve came to a similar conclusion judging by the way he clenched his jaw and shook his head.

Bucky has the tendency to ignore his own pain which had been an issue ever since he decided to serve SHIELD under Fury's command as a high profile agent. He wouldn't admit it but Steve and Natasha both knew that Bucky believes that it is the only way to punish himself and repent for the  _sins_ he commited when he was HYDRA's Winter Soldier. Even after all this time, they still couldn't fully convince him that none of that was his fault, and that he, himself, was a victim. But seventy years of manipulation and forced psychological conditioning couldn't be undone with just mere semantics and conviction so they would accept what they could get.

Out of sympathy for their friend, both Steve and Natasha decided not to call him out about it. At least not in front of everyone.

"Stop giving me that look, Natalia." Bucky said without even glancing at her to know exactly what kind of look the woman was giving him. He rolled his eyes but continued chewing on his food while picking the jalapenos out in there. Steve just shook his head at his best friend's antics but made a promise to himself that he would still talk about this to him in private.

"Hey princess, it's like 3 in the morning. Totally way past your bedtime. Why are you still awake?" Tony said when he noticed Ruby just standing next to where Bruce was, looking at nothing. "Ruby, you okay there?"

Tony's voice snapped out the girl out of her reverie and quickly cleared her throat before speaking. "Hi, sorry." She mumbled as she gave him a soft smile.

**'Go to bed, Ruby. You're tired.'**

"Shut up."

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Did Tony just hear the girl tell him to shut up? Even though it was barely a whisper, Steve and everyone else in the room clearly heard what she just said.

"Uh, I said what's up?" Ruby covered up lamely with faux innocence. "Anyways guys, I'm glad you're all safe back in the Tower. It's 3 in the morning. I'm tired and I'm gonna go head up to my bedroom. Good night!"

Everybody was so confused with how fast she spoke her last sentence and basically stormed out of the room. Steve and Tony looked at Bucky who just raised an eyebrow at them.

"What?" he grumbled. "I didn't do anything to her."

***

Meanwhile, Ruby was still fully awake in the confinement of her bedroom. She had been so distracted with so many questions in her mind about how she freakily managed to magic her twisted joint to a fully functioning ankle in a matter of seconds.

And at the moment, she really didn't know whether her mind was just playing tricks with her due to the lack of sleep she had been dealing with the past few days or she's just gone completely mentally deranged because here she was, looking at the reflection in the mirror.

Except, that human being wasn't her.

She looked like her, yes, but her once blue eyes had been replaced with golden fiery orbs that reminded her of a blazing forest.

It was actually kind of menacing.

 **'Do not be afraid, Ruby.’** For the first time ever since she's heard the Voice, as weird and confusing it was, Ruby found herself feeling a sort of calmness and serenity. ‘ **This is what we are.'** She watched herself as she reached for her reflection, placing her hand flat against the mirror as if trying to find a form of connection with whoever – whatever the Voice was.

 **'Let me show you.'** Her reflection said.  **'Close your eyes.'**

Ruby slowly shut her eyes just as the Voice had instructed, her heart was full of reluctance in doing so yet it possessed an inclined obedience. As soon as she was swallowed in darkness, everything that her senses could pick up had been amplified two times over.

She could hear several heartbeats slamming against their ribcages in a steadily increasing rhythm.

She could feel the sharp bite of the cold, prickling her skin like tiny needles, which made the hair at the back of her neck to stand up.

She could smell the tangy scent of chamomile and lavender that filled the air.

It was as if time has slowed down.

 **‘Ruby.’** And just with the Voice softly calling out for her name, every single thing that overstimulated her senses was repressed.

Silence enveloped Ruby as she followed the Voice's order. She found herself back to the dystopian field in her dream. Just like before, a female entity blazing with magnificence and underlying mystery was in the middle of the field, a few metres away from where she was standing. Her face was all but a blur and Ruby could see her hand extended towards her direction, beckoning her to come to her. With a new found feeling of certitude, Ruby closed the distance between them. Her hand reached out to the Woman's outstretched hand.

**'This is what we could be.'**

As soon as their fingers intertwined, a surge of supreme sovereignty and power encompassed Ruby. She saw a different world flash through her eyes upon gazing at the Woman's golden fiery orbs. In there, she had purpose. Power. She could do things no human being could possibly comprehend. This Woman, or the Voice as Ruby liked to call her, could give her a world where she wasn't living as the shell of the girl she used to be.

But despite of all this transcendence the Voice was showing her, Ruby could see so much death. And in the middle of the countless corpses was her. All in a white dress standing proud with self-proclaimed graciousness as her eyes blazed bright in power.

Ruby gasped in shock as she let go of the Voice's hand. She couldn't shake the image out of her mind.

How could she do that?

She was smiling in a field of corpses, bare hands soaked in blood and she looked  _so damn_ satisfied. How in the world could she possibly do that?

But that wasn't her! That was the Voice! Yes, yes. That was definitely the Voice.

Ruby looked at the Woman in front of her with sheer disdain. Whatever this thing that was living inside her head was evil and she wouldn't let her take over that easily. Not when she still had fight left in her.

 **'I am not evil, my dear Ruby.'** She soothed.  **'What you saw was just a mere fraction of a probable reality. You are young and feeble, there are still many things you've yet to understand.'**

"Then help me understand!" Ruby shouted, extremely close to being in tears.

She was so lost and confused in trying to comprehend what this Voice was and what she wanted from her. She has shown her a lot of things but none of them made any of these any clearer! Because of the contradicting emotions battling in her soul, it was becoming harder and harder for her to breathe. The Voice has just shown her a disturbing image of her god forsaken massacre and yet, she felt as if the Voice could give her refuge and sanctuary.

 **'Hush now, child.'** The Voice said in comfort as she enveloped Ruby in her embrace. ' **Be it as it may, know that I will always be your ally.'** She could not be hasty now. One wrong decision and she could cause the damnation of the universe. The rest would simply have to wait.  **'Soon, my dear. Soon.'** With one final stroke of her hair, the Voice decided to let Ruby go and send her back to her own reality.

Once again, Ruby found herself staring at her reflection in the mirror. Her eyes searched for the golden fire it had but they were back to her pale blue ones. She had half a mind to question if what happened really happened but the Voice was there in the back of her mind. A constant and reassuring presence to remind her of what she could do.

Out of curiosity, Ruby stared at her hands. She wanted to test whether she could actually duplicate what she saw herself do in her vision. Well, that was what she decided to call whatever she saw a few moments ago. In her vision, she saw herself do basically whatever she wanted.

She want her drapes drawn? She just flicked her hand towards the curtains and open they go.

She wanted to have some oranges but she can't find any? She just opened her palm and look, a basket of assorted fruits formed out of thin air.

She wanted to go home quicker than usual? She just whispered some sort of incantation and boom, she's teleported home.

It sounded completely nuts and it went against every single law of physics, biology and chemistry she ever encountered in her short period of life but it was real.

It was all real.

 **'Your soul is firmly rooted with the cosmic energy.'** The Voice explained. However, this just confused Ruby even more.

What is a cosmic energy? And what the hell did her soul got to do with it?

 **'It is the origin from which you draw your limitless power to manipulate space, time and reality. One that could even rival the strength of the Gods once full control is gained.'** The Voice continued.  **'But that my dear, I can't help you with.'**

Great.

Not did she only knew that she's in possession of some kind of  _'limitless'_ ability, she also had this Voice that knew nothing about of how she could control it. Maybe this was why HYDRA had her and do all sorts of experiments with her. She couldn't really remember what happens to her after experiments because every single time, they will inject her something that would result to memory loss. The only thing she would remember was being in the Dark Room before they send her in to start an experiment.

Could it be possible that they were finding a way for Ruby to control her abilities? And they always make her forget how so she couldn't retaliate back afterwards and that they had full control of when she could use them.

This wasn't important right now anyway. Whatever their intentions were, they have all been scrapped. She was safe now and nobody would be coming after her anymore.

This only led to one question though. Should she tell someone about this or not?

Ruby tried to open her cabinet door with a flick of her wrist, just like how she saw herself do in the Vision only to feel stupid afterwards as it remained closed.

Yeah, that was what she thought. So much for having  _'limitless'_ powers.

The only thing that would be limitless at the end of the day would be how many times the Avengers would think she's gone mentally deranged if she tells them any of this.

 


	7. Slinging They Go

After days of talking and negotiating, Ruby and the Voice finally came to some sort of compromise. She made the Voice swear that by no means would she try to take over her body without her permission, just like how she healed her broken ankle, and that anything that would come out of this  _'ability'_ she was supposed to learn how to control would all be according to her terms. The Voice, on the other hand, only had one thing to ask of her: that she trust the Voice, and therefore, follow her guidance because, Ruby quotes,  **'It's for your own good.'**

So here she was in the roof top, listening to her guidance into going about the first step of unlocking her ability. It wasn't really very clear to her what they were about to do but she knew now that the Voice would never intentionally hurt her.

 **'This power you possess is tethered to your soul.'** Ruby nodded her head. She remembered the Voice mentioning that one time.  **'I have placed a spell block in your mind that dampened your ability when you were in captivity and I would need to destroy it.'**

What the heck? All those time, the Voice was with her.

Ruby narrowed her eyes at the sudden realisation. Why the fuck did she not do anything to get her out of that hell hole? She couldn't help the resentment she felt about it. The Voice could have saved her. Hell, she could have even saved her parents!

 **'Please know that I'm deeply sorry about that.'** The Voice said in a sympathetic manner, as sincere as she could possibly sound.  **'I was very weak during that time and my capabilities were limited around the use of spells. It was the only thing I could do to protect you.'**

Ruby resisted the urge to ask the Voice why she was weak. After all, she would only give her riddles as answers anyway. Dealing with this was enough headache as it was. She didn't want any more stuff complicating her life. For now, she would try her best to hold up the end of her bargain because shockingly, Ruby found the constant Voice in her head quite assuring, almost like an anchor and for once, she didn't feel as if she was all alone.

"Just do what you have to do."

**'Remember, always listen to my voice.'**

Not even a second after, Ruby felt the most excruciating pain she ever experienced in her life. It was like her temples got impaled straight through. Then a sharp, burning hot twinge started at the middle of her chest, running down her arms, until it spread all over her body. Her fists were clenched in agony, fingers curled up tightly, as power surged through her veins making them glow a fiery bright orange.

There was no other word to describe it but say that this power she had was alive.

Ruby found it hard to sense anything. All she could focus on was how this power seem to swallow her.

Consume her.

Devour her.

She could feel herself submitting, soul slowly surrendering and succumbing down to this higher power.

 **'Endure it, Ruby.'** Someone tried to shout at her, but it was so faint. So… dull.

Unlike this one who could make everything she has always wanted to come true. Once they've joined, nothing could stop them anymore. They would be the greatest of all the greatest, the god of all gods.

 **'You're stronger than this, Ruby!'** Someone shouted again. But this time, it was clearer. It had more conviction and authority.  **'Fight it!'**

Ruby heard the Voice loud and clear.

Clenching her fists so hard her nails drew blood in her palms, Ruby tried her best to dominate over the power. She focused all her energy and strength trying to push down its intimidating consciousness until she felt the rush of blood in her veins slow down, the glow slowly fade away and her heartbeat return back to normal.

By the end of it, exhaustion crawled in her legs and she stumbled onto her knees, eventually falling down onto her side as she tried to breathe as hard as she could.

She honestly felt like she could sleep for weeks. Heck, years even.

 **'You did well Ruby.'** She heard the Voice say. She smiled, hoping that the Voice could see it, before she closed her eyes.

* * *

Peter was happily web slinging around Manhattan because he was too pumped up to just take the train from his apartment to the Avengers Tower. He heard that they were called in for a mission right after he left for home a week ago. Since he's technically an Avenger, albeit in training, he wanted to ask why they didn't call him in. Plus, he actually forgot to pay Mr Stark a visit for his new suit adjustments.

He was just about to sling towards Mr. Stark's lab window when his eyes caught something in the roof top. His focused his vision and almost toppled over at what he saw.

"Holy shit!" That was Ruby passed out up there!

Because he wasn't really looking towards where he was slinging, Peter slammed flat, and face first against the glass window of the Tower. Thanks to Mr Stark's design, it didn't crack under the force and thanks to his spider abilities, he didn't fall down a thousand feet below. Crawling up as quickly as he could, Peter scanned the surroundings within the radius. He checked the roads and nearby buildings for anything that could have possibly attacked Ruby or something.

And what is everybody doing? Don't they know they had someone up in their roof top, passed out and possibly coming slowly onto her death?

"Ruby!" Peter crouched down to where Ruby was laying and immediately checked for her pulse. Thank God. It was still there. "Hey, Ruby!" Peter shook her shoulders in an attempt to wake her up. He tried that a few more times but it didn't seem to work judging by the fact that Ruby didn't even move or twitch a single muscle in protest.

When Peter had enough, he decided to resort to more drastic measures. He took his glove off and raised his dominant hand as high up as he could. “I am _so_ sorry.” Restraining his strength so he didn't seriously injure Ruby, Peter threw his palm down across her cheek in hope that the sudden vibration would shock her system back into an awake state.

"Ow! What the hell!" Ruby shouted as she scrambled backwards away from her assailant while she stroked her cheek to soothe the pain. It took her a few moments before she recognised who just hit her. 

"First you web me then you slap me when I'm sleeping! So not cool. I'm starting to think you have an issue with me."

"Wait, you were sleeping?"

"No, I was lying on the floor dying." Ruby said, deadpanned. "Of course I was sleeping! What did you think I was?"

"I thought… you were lying on the floor dying?" Peter answered as he shrugged his shoulders because technically, that was what it looked like from his perspective. Ruby was lying on her left side, head cushioned against her arm while her waist was twisted so that the lower part of her body laid flat on the floor. Sleeping wasn't really the first thing that came into Peter's mind, sue him.

"I don't even want to know." Ruby replied but still crawled closer to where Peter was crouched down. She sat cross-legged in front of him, prompting Peter to do the same. Once they were sitting face to face, Peter's heart clenched at the guilt he felt seeing his red handprint on her cheek. It looked so painful considering how swollen it was and with the way Ruby winced when she touched it, he was pretty much on point.

"Hey, you want to marathon Lord of the Rings?" Peter suggested, trying to make it up to the girl. "It's Friday today so I will be staying through the weekend."

Ruby's eyes lit up at the idea but she shook her head. "I'm not really in the mood to explain this to Tony and Steve." She replied, pointing at the red mark. It was only the two men in the tower today. She both saw them down in the communal floor eating breakfast this morning, just before she went up to the roof top. Apparently, Clint and Natasha would stay the weekend in California and left earlier to catch their flight. Ruby asked if they were dating but Tony only shook his head while saying, "God knows when those two idiots actually realise that they are." Bucky, on the other hand, had an appointment with his therapist and according to Steve, he tended to stay out of the Tower a few hours after it.

"Hey Peter, you wanna make it up to me?" Ruby called out her companion’s attention when she noticed him a bit lost in thought. He was probably thinking about how the Captain would seriously give him his _'I'm not very happy with you'_ look as he give him a speech about the immorality of slapping a lady, while Bucky shake his head in disapproval behind Cap and Mr Stark telling him to go to his lab afterwards.

Peter snapped out of his trance when he heard his name being called. "Huh?"

"I said, you wanna make it up to me?" Peter nodded, getting himself ready. That is the most common phrase used by most people when they were thinking of something ridiculous. Like _'go shopping with me'_ or _'be my servant for a day'._

“Take me web slinging with you and I’ll call it quits."

And thank god Ruby was not most people.

Peter didn't have to be asked twice. Once he was on his feet, Ruby excitedly hopped onto his back. Her legs curled tightly around his waist while her arms found themselves encircling the expanse of his shoulder. To be honest, Ruby didn't do well with heights but not everyone gets the chance to swing around the city with Spidey so she would suck it up and have fun.

With a final warning to hold on tight, Peter ran swiftly towards the edge of the roof top and dived down into the city. He screamed in glee at the rush of adrenaline that he felt which was soon followed by Ruby's own once she got her heart and mind settling down at the notion of free falling from a thousand feet tower.

She was just about to yell, "Watch out!" to warn Peter that they were dangerously coming close to having face planted on the road in the middle of Manhattan when he triggered his web shooters and hooked themselves up to a balcony of a nearby apartment. They both lurched upwards into the sky while Ruby laughed like a maniac even if the wind continuously whacked her face. It was like being a human sling shot.

And it felt so awesome!

Peter skipped from building to building until his muscles protested in exhaustion. It was probably after around 2 hours of strolling through the city did they come into a stop near a McDonald’s and embarrassingly, Ruby's stomach announced its blatant hunger by letting out the loudest growl she had ever heard in her life.

"Sounds like you have a lion in there."

"You calling me fat?"

"What? How does that even ‒ never mind. I'm gonna go get us food."

"Yeah, you do that."

While Peter was inside the fast food chain, Ruby looked up at the big yellow letter 'm' of the logo stand towering just behind her. She wondered if she could somehow practice her power by getting herself up there.

 _'Hey V, You think I can use my abilities to get up there?'_ Ruby asked the Voice.

**'You could certainly try, dear.'**

Making sure that no one else could see her, Ruby closed her eyes and attempted to search for that energy she felt earlier this morning then focused it onto the centre of her palms. She saw the veins starting from the middle of her forearms lined with that familiar fiery orange luminescence that reached through her fingertips. With the tiny orbs of concentrated glowing energy in her hands, Ruby's intuition told her to toss it to the space just right next to her.

Ruby's lip twitched up in fascination as she saw it form a translucent oval disk in the air. She made a couple more, placing them a bit higher than the other so that she could use them as a ladder to get herself up where she wanted to be. When she thought that it was quite enough, she hesitantly placed one foot on the first one and smiled in excitement when she didn't fall off. As quick but as careful she could be, Ruby hopped from one to another, the disks disappearing as soon as her foot released contact.

She sat down underneath one of the concaves of the 'm' right on the nick of time just when Peter was coming out of the fast food chain with two bags full of food in hand.

"How did you get in there?" He asked, bewildered, once he saw where Ruby was at.

"Because I'm not actually fat contrary to what s _ome_ people say." Ruby could practically see Peter rolling his eyes so hard despite the mask.

Lacking the energy to even bother retorting back, Peter just webbed himself up and sat next to Ruby. He got them four orders of double bacon smokehouse burgers and a hot chocolate. Both teenagers were too hungry that for half an hour or so, they didn't even talk. The sound of chewing and slurping coupled with the roar of engines filled the silence.

"Damn, that was good." Ruby exclaimed after devouring her two burgers and fries. She was so full, she thought that she might fell of Spidey's back when they go web slinging back home. The prospect of going back home sounded good to Ruby now considering how tired she already felt but that was all forgotten when she looked up the sky and saw the sun. It was so pretty.

“I wanna go watch the sunset.” She blurted, out of the blue.

“I know just the perfect place.”

* * *

When Peter said that he knew the perfect place, Ruby assumed they will be sitting at the top of one of the highest buildings in New York, not the freaking Statue of Liberty.

Yes, that's right. Peter said that he liked watching the sunset as he dangle from one of the spikes of its crown so here they were, on the way to the said statue. She didn’t know why but to be honest, it felt like blasphemy.

Peter was just about to make a turn on the left when his senses blared in alarm. The hair at the back of his neck stood in apparent danger. Karen, his AI, informed him that there was a hostage situation happening at a nearby bank just five minutes away from them.

Although this wasn't his neighbourhood, Spider Man didn't discriminate on who to help. So to make sure that Ruby would be safe as possible, Peter scouted through the vicinity to find a coffee shop to drop her off. Landing just next to the main entrance, he sat Ruby down to one of the chairs and gave her his backpack.

"Stay here.” Ruby was so confused. “Wait for me till I get back." She thought they were going to the Statue of Liberty so what the hell was she doing here sitting in a coffee shop?

"Where are you going?"

"I gotta go help save some people." That was all the explanation Ruby got before Peter webbed away, leaving her here with her mouth gaped open in disbelief as she clutched at the backpack in her hand. Not that she hated him for trying to help people but it was just so sudden. Some sort of explanation about what kind of trouble he was going to poke his nose in would have been nice so she wouldn't be dying in worried speculation over here.

"Oh my God!" A waitress squealed as she ran out of the coffee shop and headed towards Ruby. "That was Spider Man, Right? Right? He was so hot! Did he save you? Did you get to ride in his arms like a damsel in distress? Was it good? I bet it was! You're so lucky! What's your name anyway?"

Ruby winced at the ear-splitting shriek this woman gave out. A banshee would be so fucking proud. And what was up with her questions? You don't just ask those things to a random stranger.

What the hell.

Ruby resisted the urge to slap the waitress and forced a smile instead, "Fuck off." With a fake laugh, she patted the waitress’ shoulders and dusted away imaginary dirt at her clothes. “I’m just joking.” She said. “But seriously, mind your own business and do your fucking job.”

Satisfied with the way she told her off, Ruby turned away from the waitress and followed the direction where she saw Peter slinging against her better judgement. As she was walking down the road, police cars raced through a moment after. No doubt that they would be where Peter was. On instinct, Ruby started to run in the pavement trying not to lose the cars. She knew it was futile to hope that she could keep up with motor engines, so imagine her surprise when she felt a boost of energy down her legs. Bit by bit, her muscles felt as though they weigh nothing at all and that she could run for hours. She felt so light and so freaking fast.

Good heavens. Who knew enhanced speed was going to be one of her ability’s perks too?

 **'I told you Ruby, what you want, you get.'** The Voice reminded her.  **'It all just depends on you.'**

Ruby smiled to herself when she noticed that she was gaining on the police cars.

Her chase led her in front of a bank. The site was already closed off with barricade tape and was surrounded by officers, reporters and even the SWAT team. Ruby hid herself inside a dark alleyway but still with a clear view of what was happening.

It looked like the SWAT team didn't even need to swoop inside the bank because the next thing Ruby saw was Spider Man breaking through the window and flying out to the street. And it wasn't the triumphant cinematic movie-like flying entrance either. Peter was literally having his ass kicked.

What followed Peter out of that bank was one of the ugliest shit Ruby has ever seen.

It was huge, about eight feet tall in height, with slimy bright red sinews outlining its limbs. Its eyes, if one could call those eyes, were a dull shade of full white framing the front through the sides of its head. And don't even get Ruby started with the mouth. It was wide with two rows of sharp like teeth that were so large Ruby wouldn't doubt its ability to eat a human being whole and alive. Plus a tongue that would put a snake to shame.

With heavy footsteps, the creature started to plough its way through the swarm of officers who were uselessly shooting at it. All it did was absorb the bullets into its goo-like body (which looked very disgusting in Ruby's opinion) and throw them back at 'em. Peter was still crouching in his knees, stomach held tightly with his left hand while heaving his guts out in a violent cough. The creature was approaching him in a worrying speed but he was able to recover just in time to web its hands together and land a kick on its stomach.

But apparently, it was strong enough to break through Peter's webs.

In a blink of an eye, it was back onto its feet and Peter was knocked down on the ground again. The creature raised its hand which was now turning into tendril-like limbs, swiftly taking the form of an axe and was getting ready to swing it down to her friend.

At that moment, Ruby didn't care whatever this creature was or where it came from, and that it could probably kill her in less than a second. All she knew was that Peter was going to die if she didn't do anything about it. So Ruby took the broken steel pipe she saw behind the dumpster next to her and darted out of the alleyway with a scream.

It was the dumbest idea ever but damn it if she was just going to watch in there while Peter dies.

Jumping as high as she could, Ruby slammed the pipe down hard onto the creature's shoulder. It looked like the monster took a moment to register that something tickled him because it paused, then slowly turned around and looked at Ruby. It stared at her for a couple of seconds, its long tongue dripping with saliva swung menacingly in a low warning.

Then it growled.

"Oh shit." The pipe in Ruby's hand fell into the ground with a loud clang and she closed her eyes, waiting for its teeth to sink painfully into her skin.

But it never happened.

Ruby witnessed another creature tackle the monster away from her, stumbling through the road in an attempt to dismember each other. The newly arrived one was similar in biology but it was black and was a tad bit smaller compared to the one that was going to kill her just a minute ago.

The black creature turned its head toward Ruby's direction and opened its mouth. Rows of teeth parted to reveal half a face of a blonde human male.

What the‒? Is this some kind of a new monster suit invention? Because if it was, she’d like to ask the inventor what the fuck inspired them to create it.

"Go!" The guy (who was wearing the creature?) shouted at her. "We will take care of this!" As soon as he said that, he transformed back to the full face of the black creature and led the fight away from where they were. Ruby wasted no time crawling towards where Peter laid and shook his head.

"Spidey, you alright?" She asked while slapping his cheek. "Hey, Spidey!"

"I'm okay, I'm okay." He grumbled and slowly pulled himself up to stand.

Ruby released the breath she didn't even realise she was holding and helped support Peter's weight by wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

"What the hell were those things?" Ruby asked. "There were even two of them."

"I don't know." Peter replied. He honestly didn't know what he just fought but it was strong.

"There's one thing I do know though." Ruby raised his eyebrow to urge him to continue. "We're totally screwed." She looked around the area and saw it crawling with reporters.

Oh God, their faces were probably all over the news. Tony and Steve would have definitely seen it. Ruby looked at her watch to check the time. It was 10:15 in the evening and Peter was too knackered from the fight to web sling himself home, let alone carry her.

"You have money for a cab home?" Ruby asked Peter.

"No." He replied and with hopeful expectancy, he asked, "You?"

"No."

"We are so screwed."

* * *

"It has begun, Master." Unbeknownst to the two teenagers, a man clad in a long black trench coat was following them from the shadows throughout the day, observing what Ruby has managed to discover from her ability.

This was definitely going to be a problem.

"Come back to me."

"Yes, Master." The man obeyed and with a wave of his hand, he opened a portal back to the facility.


	8. Sorry

"You go in first."

"No, you go in."

"Nah bruh, you should. You know Tony and Steve more than I do. They'll listen more to you."

"You don't know half the shit I do. Mr Stark would have grounded me off from the lab ages ago if it wasn't for Cap."

Ruby sighed in defeat and frustration.

The creature incident happened near Lower Manhattan and what was supposed to be a 20 minute drive home turned out to be an hour walk with both of them broke as fuck. They have also been having the same debate for the same amount of time they were walking because both of them wasn’t really fond of the idea of facing Steve and Tony back home. Even though both of them knew that they'll be equally dead by the end of it anyway.

"What about we come in through the library?" Ruby suggested. "Bucky said that no one usually stays in there except for you during the weekends."

Peter pursed his lips in thought. Maybe they could manage to avoid running into them if they convince Friday not to announce their arrival. Peter nodded his approval to Ruby and told her to climb onto his back. She looked at him warily, a bit scared to damage his body even further but Peter reassured her that most of the injuries he acquired from the fight have already healed. Once he turned on the last corner, he sped up his walking and proceeded to climb up the tower.

They reached the library balcony at exactly 11:16 PM. Ruby tried her luck in finding the sliding glass door open but just as expected, it was completely locked.

"Hey Friday." Peter greeted in an overly excited voice.

"Hello, Young Sir. Ruby." The AI replied back. "Glad you've decided to join us tonight."

Both Ruby and Peter paled at the AI's patronising voice. It looked like even Friday wasn't exactly happy with their behaviour tonight, so Peter really felt bad for asking her his next request. "Yeah, about that. Uh, would you mind not telling Mr Stark and Cap that we've come home?"

The AI didn't reply for more than half a minute and both teenagers were completely convinced that she was already tattling off to Tony. They looked at each other’s eyes, nervous and hoping that the AI didn't do just that.

"Of course. I also took the liberty of unlocking the door for you." The AI said after what felt like forever.

"Thanks Friday."

The two did not waste any more time and rushed to the elevator but just as soon as they stepped foot out of the library, they saw a pair of angry faces in the hallway. The captain may look calm but underneath his furrowed brows, Peter could see the fury in his eyes and while Mr Stark may look composed and collected, the tight clench of his jaw did not go unnoticeable.

"Hi?"

Ruby could actually point out the exact moment Tony's fuse burned and collapsed. Rage consumed him and he took one deep breath before dropping a bomb.

"What the hell was that?" He shouted as he darted a finger towards the living room where the TV was paused at an image showing Ruby's back, crouched down next to Peter. "That wasn't just any symbiote, Peter Benjamin! That was Carnage!"

"He could rip your intestines out while eating a lasagne and do it five times over!" He taunted, making Peter bow down in shame. The use of his full name didn't exactly help to soften the blow either.

"He was only trying to‒

"Nope! Nuh, uh." Ruby was cut off by Tony's sharp dismissal and immediately closed her mouth. "You don't get to explain either." He accused. "You should have called us! Not pretending to be a knight in shining armour with a damned steel pipe!" The next few sentences that came out of Tony's mouth were accusations and complaints about children and how they were making him grow grey hair way earlier than he was supposed to.

Finally, his anger seemed to dissipate and gave both Ruby and Peter one last look before announcing that he would be down his lab and stormed through the elevator.

Steve sighed and regarded the kids in front of him who glanced up with glazed eyes, looking so distraught and upset. Although he admired Peter's sheer tenacity for helping people, he couldn't fault Tony for being frightened at seeing him on the local news lying in the middle of the road, about to be axed by a symbiote.

Ruby had worried both Steve and Tony as well, even if Tony wouldn't admit it. The girl had been withdrawn, engaging in very less conversation for the past few days. So when Steve told Friday to call Ruby down for lunch only to be told that her heat signature wasn't around in the tower anymore, Tony all but panicked and sent one of his suits to find her. He only calmed down when he found out that she was eating at a McDonald’s in Chelsea.

"You're access codes will not be authorised in Tony's lab for a week, Peter."

Steve's statement had the boy looking up with disappointment and dejection. "But my new suit adjustments…" He tried to say that he had to work on those but he stopped himself, knowing that it would be futile to bargain with the Captain.

"Ruby, you will be training with me starting tomorrow."

That wasn't too bad of a punishment actually. Ruby thought she could probably do with some training considering she doesn't really have anything to do much in the Tower. She was just about to ask what they would be working on when Steve cut him off, "We'll start at 5AM sharp."

Aw hell, that's like in the freaking military!

Steve must have seen the protest surfacing across Ruby's face because he looked at her with warning, eyebrow slightly raised, as if daring her to complain. She just nodded her head in agreement and hoped that she would be able to manage her insomnia so she won't pass out in doing physical activities tomorrow.

"Up to your rooms, kiddos." Steve ordered and the two proceeded to the elevator with both their heads hung down in defeat. Peter only gave a small sad smile before getting off his floor which Ruby returned with one of her own. Once inside her bedroom, she quickly changed into pyjamas and turned her lamp on before turning off the main switches of her lights. She just tucked herself in to try get some sleep when she heard a soft knock against the glass of her window.

She turned her head and was surprised to see Peter dangling off his web upside down outside. He, too, was in his pyjamas but he was still wearing his mask. Quickly sauntering to the window, Ruby slid the locks off to let him inside.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, perplexed. Peter pulled out Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and grinned. "We didn't get to watch the sunset so I wondered, we could watch this instead." Ruby lit up and Peter immediately placed the DVD into the player. The two of them huddled under the blanket and relaxed just as the opening credits rolled in.

"I was thinking of how to apologise to Mr Stark and Cap." Peter told Ruby.

"I'll tell you my plan later." Ruby answered, eyes still locked on the screen as he tapped Peter's arm, "Now hush, I'm watching the movie."

 

* * *

"Tell me I didn't over-react." Tony said but Bucky just continued to look at him with a deadpan. Steve told him about what happened with the kids yesterday night after he came back home and now he was getting his arm checked for his monthly  _'renovations'_ as Princess Shuri liked to call it. She had been kind enough to drop by the Tower two days after Bucky just settled in to his new home together with Steve, to explain the mechanics of his new arm and give instructions on how to handle adjustments and whatnot.

Two years and all, Stark had been excellent with the arm. He even came up with a number of suggestions and improvements which actually impressed the Princess. Not that Bucky would admit it to his face. God knows the man had his ego stroked more than enough to last his lifetime.

Tony sighed as he pulled over a wire. "I over-reacted, didn't I?"

Bucky bit his cheek in thought before speaking. "The boy was just trying to help." Bucky would bet Steve's shield that Peter didn't know how powerful the symbiote was. He probably didn't even know what it was.

 Ruby though, that one was cracked in the head.

"But I think Ruby was dropped as a baby." Bucky commented. "Seriously, the girl didn't just share similar physical features with you, Stevie. It looks like she got your tendency to pick up fights with people bigger than you. You sure she isn't your long lost child?" Steve, who was just sitting nicely and comfortably on the couch while drawing, broke the tip of his pencil at Bucky's statement.

"I'm pretty sure I'd remember it if I got a lady pregnant, Buck." He replied as he sharpened his pencil for the second time this morning. "Besides, I haven't had sex with women for ages." Tony choked on the coffee he was drinking. Did he just hear Captain America talk about his sex life? Sometimes, Tony could forget that Steve wasn't exactly the innocent angel the media liked to portray him as.

"How about with men?" Tony couldn't help tease him.

"Had a lot of those, actually." The words came out abruptly before Steve could even stop it. Horrified that he just outed himself to Tony, he felt his cheeks flush furiously in embarrassment and swiftly closed his notebook with an audible snap. Bucky wasn't really surprised since he knew about Steve's sexuality even before the war and it never had been an issue between them. Tony, on the other hand, tried his best to hide his shock. He didn't want to come across as homophobic after all. Heck, he didn't have the right to be when he, himself, swung both ways. He was just taken by surprise, that's all.

"Anyway, I'm going to go wake Ruby up now." Steve hurriedly said and walked out of Tony's lab. He'll deal with him later on.

For now, he'll play the strict Captain to punish the two teenagers who worried them last night. He actually went up to Ruby's room to wake her up at half 4 this morning but the sight he saw pinched at his soul. The kids were asleep, cuddled together on the bed while a movie was still playing on the TV.

Ruby's head was resting on Peter's shoulder while his arms snaked around Ruby's shoulder, head tilted back against the headboard. Steve just didn't have the heart to wake them up when they both looked so peaceful and serene. Now that it was almost eight o'clock in the morning, he thought that it was only fair that they get ready for the training.

Up in Tony's penthouse, Steve swung Ruby's door open only to find the two teenagers nowhere to be seen.

"Friday, where's Ruby and Peter?"

"They are in the kitchen, Captain." The AI answered and Steve immediately went down where the kids were. The smell of bacon, eggs, and waffles filled his nose as soon as he stepped a foot in the kitchen. Ruby was bent over the counter, still whipping up some mix while Peter was trying to fry both bacons and eggs at the same time in two different pans.

"Look what we have here." Steve whistled and popped a strip of bacon as he sat himself in the counter.

"Morning, Steve." Ruby greeted, craning her neck back to look at him. She smiled and placed a plate of waffle topped with  _'We're sorry.'_ frost handwriting. She looked so hopeful yet hesitant so Steve gave her a wide smile to acknowledge their apology and effort. The action seemed to brighten the girl up because her lips stretched into a wide grin and she clapped her hands twice as she went back to frosting the waffles.

"Can you call Tony up as well, Fri?" Ruby asked.

"He's on his way."

Peter finished frying just as Tony and Bucky sauntered their way into the kitchen. He quickly plated them and placed it in front of the three men they were trying to make up to. Well, just two, since Bucky wasn't technically counted. Ruby gave them waffles identical to what Steve had and the two just stood in front of the three superheroes, apron and all.

Tony was reaching for the coffee but Peter beat him to it, already pouring some into a mug and handing it to him.

"Don't I feel treated like royalty today." He teased, giving a sly smirk and regarded the two teenagers with a fond expression. It took him about 20 seconds before his lips twitched into a smile and said, "Apology accepted."

Ruby and Peter high-fived in victory.  _Operation: Sucking up to Tony and Steve_ was a success.

"But you aren't getting off your punishments." Tony reprimanded. "You're still restricted in the lab, and you Princess, are still going to do some training." Ruby thought that wasn't too bad. At least Tony and Steve didn't seem too mad at them anymore.

"God." Bucky moaned as he chewed on the waffles and bacon. "You guys should be assigned for team breakfast from now on." Both Ruby and Peter chuckled at the thought. Little did they know that there were about 20 bags of flour hiding in the pantry and about 5 dozens of burnt egg thrown in the trash can.

 

* * *

**'Control it, Ruby.'** The Voice ordered.  **'Control it if you don't want them to find out.'**

_'I told you I'm trying!'_

Steve had instructed her to punch heavy bags in the gym to test her strength and stamina. On her first try, she had been surprised that she was actually able to make the bag move. Steve, being the good coach that he is, was doing his best to encourage Ruby to give it her all.

But she wasn't the only one encouraged.

With every shout and every push, Ruby could feel the power in her veins pulsating. It was as if it was responding to Steve's orders. Her punches were getting stronger and stronger, faster and faster. The chains that held the bag were rattling against its restraints and Steve's eyes widened in shock when it snapped and the bag hit the ground with a resonant thump. Even Bucky and Peter, who were sparring at the opposite end of the gym, paused and took a moment to glance at their direction, faces filled with surprise.

**'Perhaps, punch a little less next time.'** Ruby mentally groaned at the Voice's commentary and tried to push her at the back of her mind.

Steve was definitely convinced that the girl was enhanced. In no way could a girl with more bone than muscle could punch her way through a hundred pound bag without breaking a sweat, that even Tony himself who's had years of training struggled to keep up with. Steve decided not to call Ruby out about it. From what it looked like, she either had no idea of what she had done considering how she was just staring at the bag on the floor with confused eyes.

_Or, she was just feigning surprise and wanted to keep her abilities hidden_. Steve couldn’t help the thought from popping in his mind but he would have to talk about this with Tony later on.

"Ground your feet when you punch." Steve advised as he placed a new bag for her. "It keeps you more balanced."

As the training continued, not only did Steve found out that Ruby possessed increased strength and stamina but enhanced speed and endurance as well. It was with the little things did her ability slipped out. Like when she managed to block Steve's punch with her arm, despite of deliberately landing a faster blow, and actually making him stumble a little bit backwards.

Sooner rather than later, Ruby let out a deep breath and whined dramatically in exhaustion. "I can't do anymore, Steve. I'm so tired." She claimed as she drank from a bottle of water then in a split second decision, poured the rest onto her head. She squealed in delight upon the refreshing feeling it gave her and Steve couldn't help it but shake his head.

"You couldn't have waited for a shower?" He teased and Ruby just stuck her tongue out before taking her hand wraps and throwing them at Steve. He dodged and it hit the wall behind him. Steve gave her a triumphant grin to which Ruby returned with a roll of her eyes.

"I'm gonna go upstairs to freshen up." Ruby said.

"Make sure to go down the communal floor for lunch at noon."

Steve proceeded to tidy up the equipment they used and went up to his room to grab a quick shower. Once he was all done, he went down to the communal kitchen, surprised to see Tony already there, cutting up some carrots.

"Well, this is new." Steve said as he grabbed a knife to help Tony. Usually, he was the one making sure that his team was eating proper food by actually making them home-cooked meals, while Tony was either up in his lab or just strolling through his StarkPad. So it was definitely a pleasing change of view to see the genius using his hands for something domestic rather than with greased engines and machines.

"It was there already so might as well start it, you know?" Tony said, not looking up Steve even when he felt their shoulders touch when he stood next to him. "Plus, I want to tell Ruby that she'll be going to college."

That information made Steve look abruptly next to the man beside him. "Are you sure that's a good idea? Hydra might still be looking for her and‒

"I know, I know." Tony cut Steve off. "I also know you're concerned about her abilities." Steve crunched his eyebrows in confusion. How did Tony know about that?

"I was watching the camera feed in the gym. Don’t judge me. I wanted to see how Ruby fares with training." Tony answered as if sensing the other man's question.

"Then you should understand, Tony. The girl could be enhanced and with Hydra out there, we might as well give her gift wrapped to them if you're going to let her go to college." Steve argued. Ruby would be vulnerable outside there and not to offend anyone, but the girl could actually be pretty reckless sometimes considering how she thought smacking an eight feet tall symbiote with a pipe would work out in her favour. It's only been a month since they've rescued her and everybody knew that Hydra doesn't give up that easily.

"Look Steve, okay, the girl might be enhanced and it might be the reason why Hydra had her. But you know what I think? She's either having an inner conflict about her abilities or just doesn't know what's happening to her." Tony acknowledged his concern. "Don't you think she needs some sort of normalcy from all of this? Or do you want her to be imprisoned in this tower? With the same people who claimed that she could trust, which obviously she doesn't, considering that she felt the need to hide her abilities."

Steve looked down at Tony's eyes for a moment and then smiled in defeat. He thought for a moment about what the other man’s statement implied. Of course, Tony was right. He remembered the time when he locked Wanda up in the Tower during the whole debacle with Ultron and he didn't want a repetition of that all.

"Okay, but on one condition." Tony tilted his head to the side in question, urging Steve to voice it out. "One of us drops and fetches Ruby from college. At least just for a couple of weeks."

"Deal." Tony agreed. "Now, shoo. Let me do the cooking for once. You go chill out. Sing the national anthem or something."

Steve snorted and flicked Tony's forehead in retaliation. He didn't really know what came over Tony today, but boy, was he glad. So he sat himself down in front of the television, scanning through the channels to find a decent show to watch. Not fifteen minutes later, he heard Tony scream and the sharp clatter of metal colliding and falling.

"Steven Grant Rogers! This is the last time I'm touching the kitchen ever again!"


	9. Oh Hey There, Mr Parker

"I'm going to College?" Ruby's eyes twinkled in joy when Tony mentioned it.

They were having take - away Chinese food for dinner at the moment. Apparently, Tony broke the stove earlier this afternoon and he couldn't be bothered to fix it today. Clint and Natasha had come back home from California who both had a lot to say about the things they've done together but were still insistent on denying that they were dating. Ruby honestly didn't know why they both glare at anyone who even dare suggest the idea.

Steve found Bucky in the shooting range and dragged him up to dinner while Bruce finally pulled himself out his room, claiming that his bones could only handle as much yoga. He told Ruby he could join him sometimes.

"Of course. I even had Pepper arrange your new identity for you." Tony said as he pass Ruby a folder. She frowned at the contents. It said there that her new name would be  _'Mckenzie Winston'_ and that she was under foster care. Ruby understood that the Avengers had to keep her real identity out of the public database because of Hydra but it was still unnerving to have another persona thrown at her when she felt like she was just starting to get herself back.

Bucky saw the internal conflict Ruby was having as she looked through the documents. As someone who had his identity stripped away from him, he could understand what the girl was probably feeling right now.

"So, what do you wanna do in College?" Bucky asked to distract her from whatever she was thinking. The girl closed the folder with a snap and quickly replaced her frown with a smile before looking at Bucky. It didn’t escape those who were watching her though.

"Oh, I thought maybe I'd do Applied Mathematics." Ruby answered after a moment of thinking about her future career. Everybody gave her a nod of approval at her choice. "You're fine with attending the Empire State University?" Ruby said yes immediately. To be honest, she didn't really care whatever college Tony sends her to. She wasn't going to be picky.

"When do I start?"

"You could start on Monday, actually. Let me just call admissions up." Ruby wasn't really surprised that Tony was able to convince the College to admit her even at the middle of the school year. He asked Ruby if she was willing to catch up with the work and with just a nod, the man went on a heads-on negotiation with whoever on the phone was.

Now, here she was on a Monday morning, riding on a motorbike with Bucky driving, on the way to College. Tony insisted that they take one of his cars but Steve managed to convince him that taking the bike was completely alright.

"I'll come pick you up later as well, okay? Just call me when you're done for the day." Bucky said as soon as Ruby got off the bike. She shrugged her backpack on and made sure she had everything she needed before saying goodbye. Bucky ruffled her hair which had gotten him a glare, because come on, Ruby spent half an hour fixing that hairstyle. She had to look good on her first day after all. Bucky snorted and literally pushed the girl to the main entrance.

Once inside the building, Ruby went straight to the reception to introduce herself. The woman was nice enough to give her the schedule for her lessons as well as instructed her which building she should go to in order to meet the college principal. Apparently, he wanted to meet her just to make sure she could adjust well into the new environment.

Ruby had been so focused at looking down her schedule that she didn't notice there were two guys approaching her way. Said guys weren't paying attention to where they were walking either since they were so busy chatting about what they would build next in the Star Wars Lego collection.

"Woah, sorry!" Ruby exclaimed when she bumped into someone. The guy had short brown hair and was dressed in an army green jacket with a grey hoodie underneath. He was also looking at Ruby with a weird confused expression that she couldn't really fathom.

"Hi, sorry. My friend gets tongue tied when he sees beautiful women. I'm Ned, by the way." Ned said. When a few moments of silence lapsed between them, he cleared his throat and nudged his friend's arm with his elbow.

"Oh hi, I'm Peter Parker." The brunette guy finally said and Ruby couldn't help but feel like his voice was familiar.

Funny, he has the same name as Spidey.

"Sorry about the uh, you know, uh, yeah. Sorry."

 **'Do you know him from somewhere?'** The Voice asked in her mind.

_'V, do shut up please. I'm potentially meeting new friends here and I don't want them to think that I'm deranged. I'll talk to you later.'_

"Nah, it's alright. My name is Mckenzie." Ruby said, resisting the urge to wince at giving them a fake name. They seem like really good people and she felt bad for deceiving them.

"Are you lost? We could help you out if you want to." Ned offered but Parker, that's what Ruby decided to call Peter Number 2, looked like he was ready to bolt with the way he was tapping the strap of his backpack with his forefinger and looking at the end of the hallway.

"That's really nice of you but I think your friend is in a hurry. I don't want to be a bother." Parker's attention immediately returned back to Ruby upon being called out. He shook his head repeatedly while apologising if he gave out an impatient impression, then proceeded to direct Ruby to the right hallway. They were both nice enough to actually escort her to the principal's room before they went to their respective lessons.

Ruby waved back goodbye to the boys as they ran off. She took a deep breath before knocking on the wooden door with a golden metal plaque that read  _'Mr. O’Malley.'_ and waited for the soft, "Come in," before swinging the door open and peering in the room.

"You must be Miss Mckenzie Winston." The principal greeted. "Please, have a seat."

Ruby did as instructed. The man looked like he was on the young side. He was wearing a navy blue suit with a red striped tie, his black trench coat hanged on the back of his swivel chair. Not really sure of what to do, Ruby stared at the ceiling, counting the number of cracks she could see, before turning her attention back to Mr. O’Malley who was looking at her with narrowed eyes.

 **'I do not like this man, Ruby.'** The Voice warned.

_'Neither do I.'_

**'His aura looks so dark, yet I couldn't sense any ill will from him.'**

_‘You could see auras?’_ Ruby asked, surprised and awed at the same time.

**‘I could see a lot of things, dear.’**

The principal looked at her with a smile that didn't quite reached his eyes. "I reckon that you've been given your schedule, yes?" His fake and forced expression annoyed the hell out of her and his presence was making the Voice anxious. In turn, it was making her anxious at the same time.

Ruby nodded her head yes to answer his question.

"Excellent!" He clapped his hands once before pushing his chair back and standing up.

"I just wanted to welcome you in the campus. I hope you find your time here at the Empire State University eventful and enjoyable. It was nice finally meeting you,  _Miss Mckenzie_." Ruby winced at the way he said her alias but tried her best to hide it. She didn't know why his tone of voice came across as mocking and it was really making her feel uneasy.

Even then, Ruby swallowed the lump in her throat and lied, "It was nice meeting you as well, Mr O'malley."

"Please, call me Luke. We're all friends here."

Luke, as what the man preferred to be call, insisted that he accompany her to her lesson much to Ruby's dismay. With tension in the air that Ruby didn't really know where it was coming from, the three minute walk seemed like forever. She couldn't be more thankful when they finally reached the room and the man left her standing next to door after telling her to feel free about approaching him if she needed help or anything.

Ruby opened the door to come in the lecture hall. The professor had already started and didn't seem to care that she was late. Ruby looked for free seats and was relieved to spot Parker, Ned waving beside him, telling her to come and sit with them. Ruby walked up as quickly as she could to avoid creating distractions. She smiled at both guys before sitting down and pulling her laptop out.

The lecture lasted about two and a half hours. Ruby felt the tell-tale of a head ache threatening to start and massaged her temples. After fixing her things, she said goodbye to the boys but Parker told her to hold up. Ruby smiled as she waited for him to speak.

"Ned and I we're just going to go grab lunch. You want to come with us?"

"Sure! I'd be glad to." Ruby actually just had one lecture and she was done for the day so it wouldn't hurt to hang out with them. Plus, she thought that it would be cool to start getting to know them as well. They seem like they would be good friends.

The trip down to the cafeteria didn't take too long. Probably because both guys seemed to never run out of things to talk about. Ruby found out that Parker was majoring in electrical engineering and shared the particle mechanics module with her. Ned, bless the guy, offered to lend Ruby his notes for her to catch up since they both major in the same field and literally have identical schedules.

They were eating comfortably and were chatting about the things they do in their spare time. Ruby found both the boys so endearing. Ned was just a cute meatball and Parker was a huge ball of energy, always talking with passion and dedication about the things he love. All of a sudden, Parker scrambled to stuff the rest of his food in his mouth and snatched his bag.

"Sorry! Gotta go! Catch you guys tomorrow!" He shouted as he galloped away through the entrance leaving Ruby dazed at his unexpected departure.

"Okay! Go get 'em!" Ned, on the other hand, seemed completely used to at his friend's behaviour and just went back on chewing his burger. Although Ruby's not quite sure who was Parker's supposed to get. Weird.

"Sorry about Peter. He's so forgetful, sometimes he remembers stuff he needs to do at the most inconvenient time and just leaves." Ned explained once he swallowed his food.

Ruby just hummed in response and continued chatting about Ned's cat. She'd really like to meet her someday. A few minutes later, the television planted on the wall behind Ned showed Spider-Man slinging down the street, which was actually not too far away from the College, in pursuit of some kind of suspect. It looked like Spidey was busy today.

Ruby wondered if he would drop by the tower today.

"Anyways, I'm gonna go now Ned. It was nice meeting you!" Ruby and Ned exchanged numbers before she went and thought about whether or not she should call Bucky to come pick her up. She was actually annoyed when Steve and Tony told her that they would be on rotational duty on who will accompany her to College for at least a month. She tried to complain that she could definitely handle herself and that the College was only half an hour walk, 15 minutes if she took the bus! But the two superheroes were not having it.

Deciding that she would just walk home by herself, Ruby started walking towards the direction of the Tower. As she jogged, Ruby sensed that there were something wrong around her. Everyone was scrambling to the opposite way she was going. Most of them looked panicked while some looked astonished, claiming what they saw was so  _awesome_  and  _brilliant._

Ruby still continued down her way, slightly confused. More and more people scrambled away, someone even left their car in the middle of the road just to run. Intrigued about what was happening, Ruby hastened her pace and made up her mind to see what the hysterics all about was. She knew it was probably not her business but she couldn't help the curiosity that thrummed inside her.

**'This is what's going to get you killed, you know?'**

_'Oh my God, V! Stop being such a party pooper. I just wanna know what's happening. Calm your tits.'_

**'I am merely looking out for you.'** The Voice warned.  **'And never tell me to calm my tits again. It's disgusting to hear.'**

Ruby mentally snorted at the Voice and told it to get ready. God knows she watched enough movies to actually say that the situation she was in looked so much like the start of a bad zombie apocalypse movie.

That would be so cool, though.

Ruby jogged faster and turned left at the corner of a street. That's where she saw Spidey fighting that red ugly-ass alien monster. Again. And just like before, he was getting his ass kicked.

Ruby shook her head at her friend's stubbornness. She learnt her lesson, she wasn't going to intervene. What she would do, as a responsible teenager, was call Tony or Steve or anyone who was in the Tower for back up and stay where she was until they get here.

Proud of the way she was thinking, Ruby reached for her phone only to drop it on the floor when she saw Spidey got thrown against the wall so hard, she was sure she heard his bones crack. The symbiote picked up a nearby eight wheeler track and was getting ready to slam it at the limp Spidey on the ground.

Goddamn it, Ruby couldn't believe she was going to go be stupid for a second time.

Without thinking, Ruby focused her power's energy in her hands until she saw the familiar fiery orange glow of her veins down to the tip of her fingers and just wanted to break that truck in half. As soon as she motioned her hand towards its direction, the truck split itself, startling the symbiote.

Ruby herself, couldn't believe what she just done. _Damn, I just destroyed a truck with my fucking mind_.

 She didn't even had to come close. It was amazing yet terrifying at the same time.

It seemed that that the short distraction of the symbiote was all Spidey needed. Still incapacitated with his broken calves, he webbed the monster's feet together to limit its movement. It looked like Spidey upgraded the strength and endurance of his webs going by the fact that the symbiote was actually struggling to get out of it unlike the way it tore them off effortlessly last time.

**'You can render it unconscious, Ruby.'**

_'How?'_

**_'_ ** **Look for its soul.'**

Ruby rolled her eyes at the thought that this creature had a soul. Despite being completely out of the loop and unsure of what the Voice just told her to do, Ruby didn't hesitate to climb the eight feet tall monster with her enhanced speed. She cradled its head with both of her hands, the fiery orange strips of energy coming from the tips of her fingers danced across its face and neck. It tried to struggle, its sharp claws swung and slashed down her back. She felt them dug deep in her skin, making her scream in agony but she didn't let go.

Ruby closed her eyes and looked.

Flashes of someone's, ‒ a man's life played in her mind. He was in the playground, rocking the swing his little boy was on. They looked so content and happy. The boy was giggling, his smile reached his tiny little ears as his chubby hands clutched at the chains to ground himself onto the seat. Then the boy looked at Ruby and gave her a small smile, causing Ruby return one of her own.

But that was when she saw it. The contrasting shine of two souls intertwined.

The boy's eyes swirled with dark red mixed with dull grey, making them appear bloodlust. His soft smile turned wider, sharper and sinister. Ruby approached closer and closer with the urge of separating the two. The boy yelped out an ear-splitting scream when Ruby wrenched him away from the man and kicked her in the stomach with a force no child should have.

Ruby opened her eyes.

She found herself lying on the ground a few metres away from the symbiote she was fighting. Just like the Voice told her a minute ago, she was able to render it unconscious. Its slimy tendril-like limbs were slowly dissolving, revealing the man she saw in her vision. Horrified at the thought that she just killed someone, Ruby's heart started to palpitate and she began to breathe heavily, her hands clawing at her chest, desperate to get enough air in her lungs.

 **'He is not dead, dear. Just not spiritually present.'** The Voice soothed, acting as her anchor to return the peace in her current state of mind.  **'You've destroyed the bond between the symbiote and the man. It will take some time before their souls mend it together.'**

Upon hearing the Voice, Ruby felt herself slowly calming back down. She regained her bearings. Spidey was only a few feet from her. She hastily scrambled towards his side and propped his head up on her lap. His mask was torn to one side and was shocked to see the face that greeted her.

"Parker? You're Spidey Peter?" Ruby couldn't believe that was the reason why he found Parker's voice so familiar. He was actually Spider-Man. No wonder the guy was such in a hurry to leave the cafeteria earlier.

"I am." Peter replied, then coughed, blood spewing out of his mouth with every huff, before speaking again. "And you, you have powers! You're like the freaking Scarlet Witch but orange. And shorter."

Ruby resisted the urge to smack her friend, mainly because he had enough broken bones to compensate for that comment. "That fact is all hush hush. Only you know about it." Peter smiled at the thought of being the first one to ever discover, but then frowned when he reached for Ruby's shoulder, his fingers feeling warm blood oozing out of her skin.

"You're hurt."

"You're more hurt than me, you oaf." Ruby argued, noticing that Peter's healing ability was working more slowly than usual. "I need to call the Avengers."

"No need. I called them before you came. I was stalling Carnage, waiting for them."

"Okay," Ruby softly said as she clutched at Peter's hands, intertwining their fingers. "Just hold on, Pete. Hold on."


	10. Cat's Out of the Bag

Mr O’Malley, well, that's what he went by at the moment anyway, hid behind the railings a few metres away from Spider Man's fight. He has been following the girl. That damn wench who escaped in their hands. He has seen that the girl was somehow capable of using her abilities now. Although their investigation had been incomplete, considering that the Avengers butted their noses in their business halfway through, the team had been prepared and had a back-up plan for situations like this. Those hydra fools had been completely useless in detaining their subject.

O’Malley palmed the syringe in his pocket. The girl was clearly vulnerable. Spider Man would be in no condition to protect her as he lied on the ground, incapacitated yet conscious. One quick stab to the neck and the evoracin would kick in immediately. In a matter of seconds, he could portal the girl through to the master.

"I've got a clear visual of 216, master." O’Malley said in their telepathic link.

"Do not engage, the Avengers would arrive shortly."

"I can get the girl in no time. Just give me the go signal."

"Do not argue with me, servant."

With a sigh, O’Malley pulled his collar up and clicked his tongue. It was such a shame that his master would rather prolong this than take her. The sooner they get her back, the sooner they could seal  _it_  forever. But that would simply had to wait. For now, he had to go back to  _Mr O’Malley’s_ sweet wife and alter her memories to convince her that her husband had been coming home every night after office hours watching soccer, rather than bewitched into unconsciousness under a sorcerer's spell and stocked inside his own office cupboard, tied up.

* * *

It was Tony who got the phone call from Peter.

The kid clearly sounded in distress and the team wasted no time to suit up. With the incident's location not too far away from the Tower, the Avengers were confident that they would be able to get in time without the boy being seriously injured. Steve, who was as equally worried that the Spider kid was fighting against the symbiote again, asked Friday to pull up a visual of the fight.

He couldn't help but wince at the sight of Peter receiving sharp blows after sharp blows from the symbiote. They were just about to head out when a familiar blonde girl turn into the street while everyone else was running completely opposite to the direction she was heading.

Goddamn it.

"Ruby is within the perimeter of the fight." Bucky, who was in the middle of strapping his holsters shifted his glance at the projector screen. What the hell is seriously wrong with this girl? He was deadly clear about calling him to pick her up when she finished the day. Bucky was totally sure that being the stubborn brat that she was, Ruby intended to walk home, managed to catch Spidey on a bad spot and decided to help save the day. Again.

That wasn’t what made everybody gasp though.

Ruby was  _glowing._ Her veins were lined with a fiery incandescence and her eyes were ablaze. Like they were looking at two bottomless pits of raging fire. The girl was just standing on the sidewalk, close enough to see the fight but was still far away to get physically hurt. With a wave of her hand, the truck that the symbiote was holding split in half.

"I'm not the only one seeing this, right?" Tony asked the team. He was right. Ever since that incident from the theme park in Brooklyn, he has suspected that Ruby had some sort of ability. Why she decided to keep it hidden from them, Tony didn't know. His heart, although he wouldn't really admit it, clenched at the thought that the girl was probably still wary of them. Trust was a hard thing to gain, after all.

"We have to go, Team. Follow the plan." Tony was snapped out of his reverie upon hearing the voice of his Captain. They locked eyes and he nodded. His worry must have been very obvious to Steve because the next thing he knew, the man was pulling him into a one-armed hug which Tony returned with both of his arms snaking around the Captain's waist, his head resting lightly on his chest.

"Peter's going to be fine. And we'll take care of Ruby, I promise." Steve whispered in his ear before looking down at his eyes with pure determination. He didn’t know why but every time Steve uses his voice like that, it always left him breathless. Tony nodded and pulled his face plate up just as the Captain released him from his embrace.

If the team noticed the exchange between their two co-leaders, they didn't say anything.

Well, maybe, except Bucky.

He let out a fake cough to let the lovebirds know that they could have their moment after they rescue the two dumbasses who were supposed to be in school. Sure enough, he received a glare from Steve who knew him inside and out including his antics. Tony, on the other hand, didn't take the cough for anything else but as it is. Instead, he just headed out to go save the day. Naturally, the rest of the team followed.

It wasn't a surprise when they found Peter lying haphazardly on the ground with his head on Ruby's lap. They had come prepared for a fight but they thought that it was safe to assume that the girl took care of the symbiote. Though the team had been tight lipped about what they had just discovered.

To be honest, they were just waiting on how their co-leaders would approach the subject.

For now, they had a man, possibly the bearer of the symbiote, lying on the ground. Natasha didn't hesitate to cuff his hands despite his unconscious state while Clint reached out to SHIELD to have the man properly transported into their custody.

Steve was the first one who hurried towards Ruby, followed by Tony. The billionaire took hold of Spiderling, immediately asking Friday to run a scan on his injuries. On the other hand, the captain proceeded to check on Ruby. He bent down on one knee as his hands swiftly cupped the girl's cheeks, thumbs wiping the faint tears rolling down that was probably due to both fatigue and shock.

"Hey, everything's alright now." Steve murmured into her ear while he pulled her to his chest, the strong stench of copper filled his nose. He frowned and looked down.

Ruby's back was bathed in drying blood.

Her clothes was torn as if it was clawed into shreds, yet Steve could not discern a single wound. If the symbiote did manage to slash Ruby and she healed perfectly in the matter of minutes that it took them to get here, then her abilities might have been more advanced than they thought. Even with the serum, Steve and Bucky couldn't heal as fast as this.

Glancing up, he saw Tony looking straight at him and the two didn't need to form words to realise that the both of them reached them same conclusion. Going by the fact that Ruby passed out in his arms, Steve thought that the use of her abilities must have exhausted her. He called out for his team to travel back to the headquarters in the comms. SHIELD could deal with the damage control and he was sure that by the end of the day, there will be a damage fee claim posted on their doorstep.

It did not take too long before they reached the SHIELD headquarters. After dropping both the teenagers in Med bay, the Avengers went ahead for a debriefing with Fury. Bucky, who established with Fury that he'll come to debriefs only if he wanted to, (there's no need to talk about the intimidation part), went straight to the kids' quarters.

He was sat on a chair in between the two beds, waiting for either of them to wake up just so he could grill the dumbasses for being such dumbasses.

"Dumbass."

As if hearing Bucky utter the word, Ruby's eyes slowly slipped open and began to take in her surroundings. She was quite disoriented at first but once she saw Bucky's face slightly hovering to her left side, everything came back to her. People running. The symbiote. The fight. Peter. Not calling Bucky.

Shit.

Ruby slowly turned her head towards Bucky and gave him an overdramatic smile. When she noticed that her charm did not work against him and he just stared at her deadpanned, she coughed once to clear her throat and swallowed.

"Please don't kill me." She pleaded with faux innocence, deliberately making her eyes pop out, to which Bucky just snorted as he flicked Ruby's forehead. Hard.

"Ow."

"That's for you being so stupid." Bucky said and then proceeded to kiss her forehead afterwards. "And that's for you not killing yourself as well as staying with Peter until we come." Ruby's eyes glassed at Bucky's actions. After her parents died, Ruby felt so alone in the world. Her only family was gone after all. But Bucky was like the brother she never had. It didn't occur to her that she was starved for so much familial connection until just now.

"I'm so sorry." She apologised as she threw her arms around Bucky. She didn't know why she felt so emotional but all she knew was that she was back with the people she felt safe with who she was starting to think of her own family somehow. But she wouldn't ever tell them that. The Avengers had all other better things to do, like save the world twice all over again. They didn't need a clingy teenager asking for their attention like she had the right to.

"Hello? Earth to Ruby." Bucky snapped his fingers in front of her. It had been a few minutes since he released her from his embrace and the girl just stared in space. Probably overthinking about things again.

"You okay?"

"Does everybody know?" Ruby asked. Bucky had a hunch of what she was trying to ask. What he didn't understand though was Ruby's tone of voice. Why did she sound so scared?

"Know what?"

"You know, the, uh." She murmured quietly as she gestured her abilities with her hands.

"Yup." Bucky said, popping the 'p' at the end of the word as he slowly nodded. The kid looked so dejected at the fact and Bucky couldn't help but wonder why.

"You know that it's alright for you to have these sort of abilities right?" Bucky voiced out which he was quite sure that this would be what the team would say as well. The girl looked up, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth, eyes glazed with doubt and apprehension. Her big blue eyes bore into Bucky's own as if searching for lies behind his words.

"They won't think I'm crazy or send me down to the scientists to be examined?" Bucky's heart broke at Ruby's question. With what happened to her at such a young age, he wasn't surprised to know that the girl found it hard to trust people around her.

Just like what he told her before, Bucky wanted to tell Ruby that the Avengers themselves were all mentally unstable in their own way if one thought about it. But right now, that's not what Ruby needed. She needed reassurance. Full reassurance that all of her worries would not come into light.

So with both of his hands cupping Ruby's cheeks, Bucky looked at her straight into the eyes. "No, Ruby. Nobody will send you down to the scientists. Nobody will think you're crazy." He spoke slowly, with absolution and complete honesty.

"If you tell them about the Voice just like you've told me, they will not judge you. If I didn't, then I'm sure as hell that Steve won't. Or Tony. Or Clint. Or anybody else you're worried about. Isn't that right, guys?"

The door swung open and one by one, the rest of the Avengers slipped in the room. Even Dr Banner, who Bucky was sure down the lab. Bucky had known that they were listening in to their conversation ever since Ruby asked about them discovering her abilities.

"You're one of our own now." Steve said, hand landing on top of Ruby's head. "And we take care of our own."

The tears that were threatening to fall finally rolled down Ruby's cheek. But they were not of sadness, or despair. They were of relief. With the way Steve spoke with finality, Ruby felt as if there was a big thorn that was plucked out of her chest, allowing her to breathe freely again.

"As much as I like these cheesy atmosphere going on, I'd like to inform everybody that I'm awake now. Thank you for your concern."

Just like that, the moment was broken. 

Everybody turned to Peter and Ruby laughed her ass off, lips turned upwards into a wide smile as she wiped her tears away.

**'Cat's out of the bag now, huh?'**

_'Yeah, and you're still in my head.'_

**'You're never going to get rid of me, dear~ '** The Voice proclaimed in a sing-song manner. She just shook her head at her mental companion's antics. For once, it felt like the notion of having the Voice inside her head forever didn't seem too scary. Ruby looked at everyone hovering around Peter with a fond expression. She got a new family now.

**'Maybe you can show me off to your new family?'**

**_'_ ** _I never knew that you were an attention whore.'_

Nonetheless, Ruby hopped out of her bed and made her way through Peter's bedside. Both the guy's legs were in casts but the doctor have already informed them that Peter's healing factor was kicking in and that his bones would be fully reformed in a matter of hours. But why would Ruby make her friend suffer in bed when she knew herself that she could help him with her abilities?

"Guys, do you want to see something cool?" Everybody just raised an eyebrow at her.

Ruby settled her hands on Peter's broken bones which made him recoil slightly but didn't move his legs away. "Trust me." Ruby reassured him when she saw him look at her warily. Her hands began to glow and streaks of fiery orange luminescence surrounded the cast. Peter felt a faint warmness on the surface of his skin despite the thickness of the wrappings. Everybody watched, entranced with what Ruby was doing, until the glow died down again and Ruby's eyes returned back from golden amber to her natural blue ones.

They were all quiet, waiting for Peter to move, and when he did, everyone was flabbergasted with the fact that Peter's broken bones healed as if he didn't get the injury at all. They vocalised their astonishments, making Ruby blush before all their praises like she had done something so world-changing. She didn't know that the Avengers would have been so understanding of her abilities.

**'Just like the Captain said, you’re one of them now.'** The Voice murmured after pondering underneath her thoughts.  **'They will be with you in every step of the way.'**

_'Yeah, I'm starting to see that now, V.'_ Ruby replied back mentally. She was still wondering how she would tell her new found family about the Voice inside her head, because even herself, couldn't understand what it was. It didn't matter that Ruby believed that the Voice was real and wouldn't do anything to hurt her. What mattered was the fact that scientifically and medically speaking, she would be considered mentally unstable.

"Not trying to burst everyone's bubble, but can somebody tell me how we'll explain to SHIELD doctors about Peter's non-existent injury?"

Everybody's attention turned Natasha as she spoke the question, looking at her like she's grown two heads. They were actually all clueless on how to go on about that. Both Ruby's and Peter's doctors would check on them in half an hour and it would definitely arouse suspicion if they see them completely fine.

"Uh, I can break his bones again?" Ruby said. She was saying it jokingly, of course, but Peter glared at her like she suggested to throw away his Lego collection just to spite him.

"Alright. That's enough of your magic Houdini. You two," Tony pointed at Clint and Natasha. "You go explain all this to our favourite SHIELD director. And us two, Princess," Tony flicked his finger between him and Ruby. "We're gonna go flying." With just that said, Tony closed his face plate down, grabbed Ruby's waist and tucked her against his chest which ultimately muffled all her protests, before running towards the balcony and soaring through the sky.

Steve shook his head. It would have been great if Tony and Ruby stayed with him so they could all talk about her powers in private. But boy, he couldn't get mad at Tony for his antics. Annoyed, yes, but mad? No.

Steve sighed. Guess he'd just have to walk back home.

"You're not gonna leave me here alone too, right?" Peter asked, concerned that most of the Avengers left, saved for Bucky who was still sitting on a chair beside his bed.

"I gotta make sure Tony doesn't harangue Ruby about her powers." Steve joked then nodded at Bucky to keep an eye on the kid.

* * *

"Don't you dare Tony!" Ruby shouted, her voice muffled as she struggled to keep her head tucked in Tony's neck. "Or I would destroy all you Iron Man suits! Don't think I wouldn't!"

The man was threatening to drop her from the sky saying that,  _'It would just be like sky diving! Without the parachute. Come on, I'll catch you.'_ She told him a million times that she didn't do well with heights but Ruby now knew that Tony did not have a single nerve of empathy in his body going by the way his grin went even wider when she told him about her fear.

Yes, even with his mask on. She could tell. Don't ask how. She just knew. Goddamn it.

"What do you say, Princess? Wanna sky dive?"

Ruby hesitated to answer.

**'What did I tell you, dear?** ' The Voice muttered at the back of her mind. **'You can do whatever you want. It all just depends on you.'**

"If I die, I'm gonna rise back from the dead just to kill you twice over." Ruby tried to sound threatening but to Tony, it was just like he was receiving threats from an angry cat. He chuckled.

"Stop laughing and don't call me Princess." She warned one more time but soon regretted it because the next thing she knew, Tony loosened her grip and she was falling.

Fast.

"Tony! I take it back!" Ruby shouted, not even knowing if he was nearby or what. "I love you from the bottom of my heart!"

**'Focus, Ruby.'**

Her panic lessened when she heard the Voice again. She didn't even think twice to gather her energy. She could feel her power surging through her veins, quickly travelling down her calves and arms. Soon she felt it surround her. Almost like an invisible veil of energy wrapped tight to her body like a second skin. And it helped her find her balance.

She was now floating upright, able to see the skyscrapers of New York from such a wonderful angle. Ruby smiled when he saw Tony approaching. Instinct told her to push herself forward and even with his suit on, Ruby could tell that the man was surprised that she could manoeuvre herself around in the air.

"Race you!" She challenged before hurrying away from Iron Man.

Of course, that didn't end so well for her. She felt stupid about challenging a man that had been flying through the skies of New York for years. It wasn't her fault that the city looked so different from the top view. She may or may not have accidentally landed on someone else's penthouse.

"At least I didn't have to walk."

Steve rolled his eyes at both Tony and Ruby who chuckled and high-fived each other. Actually, why the hell did Steve not take a cab? He mentally smacked himself silly at the thought. No doubt he wouldn't hear the end of it from Bucky once these two have told the rest of the team.

All three of them went quiet when they heard the elevator ping. The doors swung open and it revealed a woman clad in a dark red leather jacket alongside a tall man with dirty blonde hair.

Tony smiled at the two guests.

"Hello, Wanda." He greeted, and turned his gaze on the other man. "Vision."


	11. ScarletVision

“Vis, hand over the salt please." Wanda said, her voice laced with a thick Sokovian accent that Vision has grown to love. Pulling himself swiftly off the chair, he opened the cupboard behind Wanda to grab the salt and poured a spoonful on the dish she was cooking.

"That's enough. Thank you." She smiled and kissed him on the cheek before turning back her focus on mixing the sauce.

Vision sat back down and continued to watch his Beloved with a fond expression in his eyes. After surviving against Thanos, the two have decided to lay low and separate from the Avengers. Don't get them wrong, they would still do whatever they can to save the world if need be. But for now, they were contented in their home in a small little town in the countryside. In here, they were just themselves. Just two people trying to live a normal life like any other couple.

Vision smiled at the thought.

"What are you smiling about?" Vision's smile grew even wider before saying, "Just thinking about you."

Wanda dropped the wooden spoon next to the pot she was tending to. With a mischievous smirk, she sauntered her way towards Vision, making sure that her hips was subtly swinging from side to side with every step she took.

"And pray tell, what were you thinking about?" She whispered, her lips slightly grazing Vision's ear as she straddled his lap.

"You might burn the potatoes, Wanda."

"The potatoes could wait." She grumbled and kissed Vision on the mouth. Her left hand flicked towards the stove to turn it off before settling it back to grip her man's neck, deepening the kiss.

Their time was interrupted when the Avengers' phone rang. Yes, that's right. It was the Captain who insisted that they have a separate, private line that no one could tap into but the Avengers, just in case they were in need of serious help or the other way around.

Both of them were suddenly alert. Wanda immediately took hold of the phone while Vision reached out for his fellow AI in the internet. Friday, being one of the kindest artificial beings that he's ever met, sent him data about a HYDRA captive girl who, as it seemed, had similar abilities to those of Wanda.

Said woman just finished conversing with Tony on the phone just as Vision finished perusing through all the data he managed to get a hold of. Apparently, the girl was fighting a symbiote along with Spider Man and Mr Stark took the liberty of having Friday scan the girl's abilities. It seemed that the molecular composition of the fiery orange glow from the girl was unmistakenly identical to Wanda's.

Vision didn't know whether that information should put him at ease, because at least they had a clue on what the girl might be, or put him on the edge. It looked like Wanda was more on tipping over the latter, going by the crease between her eyebrows and the way her eyes slightly turned bright red in apprehension.

"Let's go, Vis. Tony needs us."

* * *

Wanda was overwhelmed with the gravity of force that hit her as soon as the elevator doors opened.

"Hello, Wanda. Vision." Tony greeted.

Vision said something back to the man but Wanda didn't hear what it was because her attention had been snatched away by the girl who looked exactly like the Captain, and by the overwhelming force was coming from her. Did Steve had a secret family, like Clint? Wanda could see the girl's aura. It was embracing her like a fiery cocoon, an enormous glow of orange, captivating and daunting at the same time.

Wanda's gaze met the girl's light blue orbs. She tried to enter her mind, just so she could have her own read of what the girl can do. That's what Tony called her for, anyway. As soon as she began to prod into the girl's mind, she gasped and was surprised to feel the same force blocking her way in. She got pushed out even before she managed to take a glimpse of the girl's memories and abilities. But there was something else she heard in there.

Or rather…someone.

"I am not aware that you will be dropping by the tower." Wanda's eyes turned back to Steve who was giving Tony a 'Why was I not consulted about this?' look. The man just shrugged which was basically Stark speak for 'So what?' Steve rolled his eyes but proceeded to step towards Ruby and placed a hand on her left shoulder.

"Ruby, this is Wanda and Vision." He introduced. Ruby smiled at both their guests, despite her initial uneasiness, and held out her hand to give them a handshake. "I'm Ruby." Wanda returned her smile but tilted her head, examining the girl. Ruby didn't seem evil, but Wanda could not help but be wary. She didn't like not understanding things, and the girl right in front of her, was the epitome of inapprehensible.

"Now, I'm sure Tony could enlighten us both why they are here." Steve told Ruby with his voice clearly laced with sarcasm. Both of them swore that they would give the couple an out from all this avenging business when they've asked for it so they agreed that they would only call out for them when they were truly in desperate need. As far as Steve was aware, they were not in desperate need.

"Oh come on, take the stick out of your ass, Capsicle." Tony snorted and pressed the button at the centre of his chest to disengage his nanotech suit. "I was gonna tell you but I didn't know that lovebirds here would literally take just an hour to get here from the opposite side of the country. Which," Tony paused and pointed both his left and right index fingers at their guests. "Was impressive, by the way. Don't care how you did it, but well done. And now this brings me to explain why I've called for them."

Steve crossed his arms at his chest while Ruby leaned her full weight against Steve. She was still a little bit exhausted from the fight considering that was the longest time she tried to use her powers.

"When Princess here started to leak orange thingies from her hands, I had Friday run a scan of her biology and was surprised to see that her glowing things had a similar molecular structure as those of our dearest Wanda." Tony started. "Whether their abilities came from the same origin or not, that I do not know. I would have to do some tests, of course with Ruby's and Wanda's permission, to answer that question. So you see, I thought having Wanda show Ruby the ropes of her power would be quite wise. I mean, technically, we don't know if they have the same ability but close enough, right?"

Steve couldn't really fault Tony for thinking as far ahead as this. It would be really good for Ruby to have someone similar support her through all this, so she didn't feel too alienated. Steve just hoped that Tony could have talked this through with both Ruby and him first. He moved the arm where Ruby was leaning on and wrapped it around her shoulder instead.

"What do you say, Ruby?" Steve asked. In the end, it would be her decision anyway.

"I think training would be really good for me."

It had been decided that Wanda and Vision would remain in the tower for however long Ruby felt confident enough to discover her abilities more on her own. Ruby felt really bad for disturbing the couple especially when Vision had mentioned during their chat that they had been staying in the countryside for more than 2 years now, enjoying a normal life away from danger. The couple shook their heads simultaneously when she apologised.

Tony commented about getting to know each other more to which Ruby protested that Vision must be left with them too but the android insisted that he wanted to synchronise himself with the surroundings again. Something about being nostalgic with all these familiar places that he hadn't seen for quite a considerable amount of time. Vision, Steve and Tony all scrambled out of the communal floor a while ago to do their own things so it was just Ruby and Wanda left.

Ruby knew that her companion was a bit wary of her. Not that she could really blame her for it. If it was Ruby in Wanda's shoes, she would be on her guard too, to say the least. But Wanda seemed like a nice person.

**'Trying to get into your head isn't really my definition of a nice person, dear. I don't trust her.'**  The Voice warned.

_'Yeah? Well, tough. Tony trusts her, so I will too. And blasting her out wasn't very nice either, you know.'_  Ruby answered just as she settled the coffee tray onto the centre table. She handed a mug of black coffee to Wanda who took it with a grateful smile on her face.

"I don't know how you take your coffee so just take whatever you want." Ruby said while gesturing towards the jar of sugar and milk she prepared.

"Thank you, that's very nice of you. Sit down." Wanda tapped the space next to her before she took a sip of her coffee. "Tell me something about yourself, Ruby."

Ruby grimaced when she heard Wanda's request. What could she say? It wasn't like she was the most interesting person to know about. Wanda could have asked a normal 10 year old kid and they probably would have had more things to say than her.

"There's nothing much really." Ruby started. "I mean, I used to live in Michigan with my parents. Got captured by HYDRA. Lost my parents. Then now I'm here." Wanda nodded her head. She could empathise with her loss of parents, especially at such a young age. If there was only a way to prevent young kids like her from experiencing all this trauma, she would have done it.

"I had a twin brother. He died protecting Clint and a child from Ultron."

Suddenly, a portrait of a man with silvery blonde hair smiled down at Ruby in her mind. She blinked and her gaze focused back onto Wanda's eyes. Did she just telepathically sent Ruby an image of her brother?

**'See? This is why I don't trust her.'**

_'Shut up, V. The lady was talking about her dead brother, who she clearly loves so much. Have some respect. Jesus Christ.'_

"I'm sorry, Wanda." The brunette shook her head and placed her coffee mug down to the tray. "Your brother's hot though. May his soul rest in peace." Wanda chuckled at Ruby's attempt of humour. She crossed her legs and turned her body fully towards Ruby. She stared hard at her eyes, pupils swinging from side to side. Her forefinger was softly tapping a rhythm against her chin. Unsure of what to do, Ruby fisted her hands at her side and cleared her throat. Then Wanda seemed like she found whatever she was looking for and straightened her back. "You're afraid." She said with an air of finality.

Ruby sighed. "Of course, I'm scared." She admitted. "I've got no one left in the world."

Wanda shook her head as she clicked her tongue against her teeth before looking Ruby straight in the eyes and speaking. "No, you're not scared of being alone. You're afraid of yourself. Afraid of what you can do, afraid of that Voice inside your head."

Ruby gasped when Wanda mentioned the Voice. She didn't recall telling her about that. Actually, she didn't want to know how Wanda figured out.

**'I told you. She isn't to be trusted.'**  Ruby ignored the Voice.

But Wanda was right. As much as Ruby wanted to deny it, she was, in fact, scared of her own self. No matter how much she convinced herself, she still knew that she knew nothing about the Voice inside her head. Nor where her powers came from. Or why she has them. Heck, she didn't even know what she was anymore. Yes, she use them but she would be lying if she said that she use her ability without the thought of a negative consequence happening, running at the back of her mind. Ruby gave out a silent laugh. Here she was, creating walls to block and deny her own emotions for months and it only took a few sentences from one woman to knock them all down.

"Can I show you something?" Wanda asked when she noticed Ruby falling into some kind of trance.

**'No.'**

"Uh, yeah, go ahead." Ruby ignored the Voice's refusal as she saw Wanda's fingers reach out for her temples. By instinct, Ruby closed her eyes and soon enough the darkness behind her eyes was filled with a vision. There were children. Two, to be precise. It didn't take too long for Ruby to figure out that she was looking at a young Wanda and Pietro along with their father. They seemed blissful, happy and content, but as swift as a raging bullet, the children's smiles vanished into thin air.

Wanda's laugh were replaced by screams of anguish while Pietro silently cried as he held onto his father's leg. 'You're out of control freaks! I will be no father to the likes of you.' The man shouted, pulling both children off of his leg and dragged them outside their house. For days, the children begged to be allowed back in. In their street, the neighbours were scared of them too. Afraid of what they would do, if their father decided not to open the door for them.

Wanda and Pietro had no choice but to leave. They couldn't use their abilities to force their father because they both knew that it would only prove their father and their neighbours wrong. They were good children. But it became harder and harder for them to believe that. Everywhere they go, their abilities made people uneasy. They've been called names. Devil twins. Children of Satan. Freaks. So they learnt how to hide. For years and years, the twins tried to get by living like normal kids. Only resorting to their abilities when they absolutely had no choice anymore.

Until they didn't have to hide anymore.

Ruby saw a man in a wheelchair. He was training the twins along with other children _. 'Everybody's different.'_  he said.  _'Some could run faster than the speed of sound like Pietro here, or some could make things levitate like our little Wanda. Most, however, don't have an ability at all.'_  The man wheeled himself towards the front of the room before speaking again.

_'And they're scared, because they don't understand us. And that's why you are here. You're afraid to use your abilities because you don't understand. Comprehend. Know yourself. Look at what's within, and once you know yourself better than anyone else in the world, I promise you that the rest would follow.'_

Once again, Ruby's vision was filled with darkness. She felt Wanda release her head and she opened her eyes to find said woman looking at her intently with what seemed like concern and empathy in her expression.

"You're only afraid because you don't understand. I am afraid too, for the same reason." Ruby couldn't hide the flinch when Wanda admitted that even she was scared of Ruby so it took Ruby by surprise when Wanda enveloped her fingers with her own, in an attempt to provide comfort. "But together, we could understand."

That was how Ruby ended up showing Wanda all of the things she could do. From healing wounds, to moving things with her mind. They even found out that she was capable of making portals as well, "Just like Doctor Strange", as Wanda said. Tony absolutely denied that he screamed like a little girl when Ruby appeared next to him in his lab. He didn't have to know that it was a mistake though. Ruby actually intended to try portalling herself to her bedroom, but she didn't have much control yet and so she ended up in several places before actually locating her original destination.

Overall, Ruby thought that having Wanda teach her more control over the next few months would be awesome. Ruby liked her. She always wondered what it would feel like if she had an older sister and she thought that perhaps, this was as close as she could. What was strange though, was the fact that the Voice had been very quiet through it all. Months have passed ever since Ruby realised that there was a Voice in her head so it was very disconcerting to have her mind silent.

Ruby didn't know whether to be relieved that the Voice's chattering seemed to stop, or to feel even more nervous than usual because she didn't know what the Voice was up to. After all, it wasn't like she could tell what the Voice was spewing in her non-existent metaphorical brain even when she was constantly chattering. What more when she was silent?

"V? Are you there?" Ruby asked out loud. She looked up at the ceiling lamp as she rubbed her calf against her comforter, sighing at its softness. She wondered whether the Voice would tell her what her name was anytime sooner. Ruby thought it was only fair. The Voice seemed to know everything there was to know about her yet Ruby was still completely baffled by just her mere existence.

"Why are you so quiet?" Ruby asked again.

Just like earlier this afternoon, she was met with silence.

Ruby listened to the sound of her breathing. She inhaled, feeling her lungs expand as she sucked air in, and exhaled slowly. She continued to listen to her herself, inhale and exhale, until it lulled her to her sleep.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	12. When Trouble Comes

"Rise and shine, Princess!" Wanda's thick Sokovian accent filled Ruby's ears along with the sharp rhythmic clapping of her hands. Ruby refused to open her eyes and crunched her nose as she mumbled incoherent complaining noises while she buried her face further down her comforter.

Damn Tony for letting others calling her _Princess._ Ugh.

"Get up now or I'll pour a bucket of ice cold water on you." That threat had been going on for three weeks now every single Saturday morning to the point that Ruby just called it a bluff. Nonetheless, she cracked open an eye just to check Wanda's expression. When she saw her grinning down on her, Ruby snorted and turned her back to Wanda with the full intention of going back to sleep. She didn't want to go training today. She had a late night with Peter yesterday because she insisted that she come with him patrolling up until three in the morning despite his blatant complaining.

_"Mr Stark will carve me a new ass if he found out you were with me!" Peter yelled. He didn't need to guess that Ruby tracked where he was using her new abilities. Apparently, she could locate auras and consciousness of people. Although he knew that Ruby was powerful, he still worried about her safety._

_"It's not like I'm gonna fight. I'll just be watching. You know, from the sides. Think of me like your supervisor. Plus, no one would know I'm with you. I have an astral projection of myself reading in the tower." Peter groaned at Ruby's audacity but couldn't help giving her a smile._

_"Astral Projection is so cool. You gotta make me one too."_

_"Uhm, that's not really how it works."_

Ruby had been so pre-occupied of her thoughts of Peter that she barely registered the cold liquid that slapped down her cheek with a sharp splash. It immediately made her sit up on the bed, her hand automatically went up her face and hair to smooth them down. When she smelled a fruity scent and looked down at her sticky hand, Ruby glared at Wanda.

"You poured a bucket of juice at me!"

"Oops."

Ruby groaned so loud and threw her pillow, which Wanda just easily sidestepped to. Figuring that there's no point arguing with her, Ruby walked towards her wardrobe to grab a change of clothes and a towel. She was about to step into the shower when she heard Wanda call, "Meet me at the gym when you finish!"

Surprisingly, it didn't take her very long to freshen up. She dressed herself with a black midriff tank top and yoga pants before stepping into the elevator. "Morning, Friday. Could you take me down to the gym, please?"

"Good Morning, Ruby. I was told by Miss Maximoff that she will be with you in a moment." Ruby rolled her eyes. She supposed she could do some exercise on her own while waiting for her. However, it looked like she didn't need to because as soon as she entered the gym, she found Steve and Tony sparring in the ring. The two were so focused they didn't see her pull up a chair and settle her ass down so loud it smacked the cushion.

Ruby had to admit it. These two made sparring look like a dance. They were moving so gracefully and in tune with each other. Almost like every punch, kick and jab they took were choreographed. She couldn't help but admire them two. Ever since they found out about Ruby's abilities, most men had been really supportive and have tried to make sure that their interactions with her as normal as it had been before. They gave advice whenever she needed some, just like her father would have done when she finds herself in trouble.

It was easy to say that her relationship with these two superheroes had progressed even further. But Ruby would say that the relationship between the two men had definitely changed too. She could see it with their interactions. The longing looks, the small smiles they give when they thought nobody else was looking. Just like now, Ruby could clearly see the sparking tension as they tackle each other. But no one mentioned anything about it. Even when they see Steve's hand hanging at the back of Tony's chair when they eat dinner together, or when Tony always seem to doze off Steve's shoulder during movie nights.

_"Maybe they haven't worked it out yet?"_ Ruby thought to herself. She grinned like a lunatic. It seemed that a plan needed to be arranged.

"Mr Stark, I'd like to inform you that the paperwork required by Ms Potts is due to be signed by lunch at the latest." Friday's voice halted their sparring session. Steve went to the corner to reach for a towel while Tony took a large gulp of water. His eyes landed on Ruby and they seemed to widen in surprise for a moment before he swallowed and placed his water bottle down.

"How long have you been here?" Even Steve's neck snapped towards me.  _Not my fault you two were busy gazing at each other's eyes to notice me._

"I didn't realise the gym is off limits for me now." Ruby replied to which Tony just rolled his eyes.

"You want to train with me, Ruby?" Steve offered. She's never really properly trained with Steve. Not because she was afraid, but because Steve was such a slave driver. It may look like he's America's sweet angel with those big blue eyes and shining blonde hair, but don't let them deceive you. The last time she trained with him, Steve made her do three extra sets of strength exercises on top of her two. When she voiced out her complaint, he simply said,  _"I know you can do it. You're just being lazy. Tell her Tony."_ Suffice to say that she didn't try to train with him again.

Thinking that Wanda may take long and that she can't exactly go back to sleep anymore, Ruby reconsidered his offer. "Sure, what harm can it do, right?"

Steve smiled and took a sip from his water bottle. Tony patted her shoulder before hopping down to the chair she was previously sitting at.

"Wait, hold on, I thought we're just training." Ruby said when he noticed Steve assume a fighting stance.

"This is training."

"Hey, I never agreed to spar!"

Steve just smirked.

Ruby didn't have enough time to react because the next thing she knew she was slammed down, kissing the floor. Not hard enough to make anything bleed, but enough to disorient her. She didn't waste time though. Hastily, she pushed her weight up, one leg at a time, and crouched to an aggressive run. She was fast but Steve was faster. He managed to side step easily out of Ruby's way and avoided being tackled to ground, all the same while throwing a grin at her. Groaning that she missed her chance, Ruby twisted her body as she threw a high kick at her opponent.

Having enough experience in combat, Steve was able to predict Ruby's move and was able to block it with his forearm. He took the chance to grab her leg and twist it, rendering Ruby out of balance and making her fall to the ground. Again.

"That is so unfair!" She shouted as she struggled to catch her breath.

"No one will fight you fair out there, sweetheart." Steve lectured, still with that stupid grin on his face. Frustrated that she felt so helpless against Steve despite all the combat and skill training she had with Wanda and Natasha, Ruby figured she used her powers. She's more in control now, so no harm done, right? Plus, Steve had his super strength. She doubted that he was holding back on her.

Once she was convinced that she could get back on her feet again, Ruby gathered her energy on the centre of her palms and smiled as soon as she saw the ball of streaks of fiery luminescence in her hand. Excited that she knew she could get Steve off guard now, she threw the energy at him.

"Oh shit!"

It was only when she saw Steve flying across the end opposite end of the ring did she realise that she forgot to control her strength. The impact had Steve break through the ropes. His back smashed on the wall, denting it before he slid on the ground.

"What the hell, Ruby?" Tony ran down to Steve who was already arguing that he was fine and that it was alright.

Ruby, on the other hand, was standing frozen, right in the middle of the boxing ring. Her eyes were glued to where Tony crouched beside Steve. Thoughts ran through her head. All these countless hours of training, of perfecting her skills, of controlling her abilities had all gone down to waste.

Oh God.

She couldn't believe it. She hurt Steve. She hurt one of them. She hurt her family.

A tear ran down her cheek as she contemplated what she just had done. How could she ever believe that her abilities could bring good? That she could use it to help people? Look at Captain America. If this is what it does to a super soldier like him, what more to civilians? What if she accidentally hit someone?

Ruby’s breathing began to get shallower and shallower by every second. Once Steve managed to reassure Tony that he wasn't suffering from any serious injuries from Ruby's attack, both men gathered themselves and approached the teenager.

"Hey, hey, kid. It's alright. It's okay." Tony soothed as he touched Ruby's arm to get her attention. Her eyes flicked to him for a moment and then settled to look at Steve.

"I- I'm s-s-so s-sorry." She struggled to stutter an apology in between breaths. Her heart was beating too fast with shame, anxiety and worry.

"You didn't hurt me, sweetheart. It was an accident." Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say because the kid started to sob even more as she broke down into the ground with knees clutched tight close to her chest. Steve tried to calm her down but she flinched away when he tried to touch her so both men were in conflict on how to convince her that it wasn't her fault. In the end, Tony had to calm her down by counting their breaths together.

"Look, you could never hurt me, alright?" Steve said in a gentle voice as she tilted Ruby's chin with his fingers. She held his gaze for a second longer before she dove hastily in Steve's arms and hugged him tight.

"I'm still sorry." She mumbled against his chest.

Steve ran his fingers down Ruby's hair as his eyes found Tony, who gave them both a small sad smile.

***

"Have you seen Steve? He's totally soft for you. I bet he'll say you're being an idiot for worrying over this." Ruby had been in the middle of her rant about what happened in the gym yesterday when Peter made this claim.

"He is not soft for me."

"Uh, yeah, he is. Remember when we went to the beach to celebrate your birthday? The man literally wouldn't stop finding seashells because you said you wanted to collect a hundred of them. Or that one time you begged him to allow you to go the circus with me and he folded faster than the speed of light, despite you being grounded." Peter argued.

"That wasn't just him. Tony helped me find seashells too. And, Tony argued with Steve about the circus so in the end I had to be back home at 8pm sharp. "

"Exactly. They're practically your fathers."

Ruby kept her mouth shut. She didn't want to say anything about that. Actually, she was still in the middle of contemplating whether that was how she saw both men because she felt like she was betraying her father, just at entertaining the thought. Obviously, she wouldn't admit this to anyone. She didn't want the Avengers to think about some teenager that was thirsty for a father figure. They had much more important things to do, like maintain world peace or some shit.

Poor Peter completely misunderstood Ruby's silence. He knew all about how Ruby lost her parents. Ruby could see the moment Peter realised what he just said and his eyes widened in panic.

"It's all good, man. Don't shit yourself over there."

Over time, Peter and Ned became her confidantes. There were no secrets between them so Ruby really felt bad about hiding what she felt about Tony and Steve. The three of them, seated cross-legged at the rooftop, continued to eat with talks of TV serious they could totally binge watch filling the silence. As it was, Peter was still being a baby about inviting MJ over to come hang out with them. When Ruby tried to hassle him about talking to her, Peter dismissed her with a wave of his hand. Apparently, he  _'only really thought about her as his friend'._ Peter's words, not Ruby's. He just gave Ruby a shrug when she tried to blackmail him in telling Tony about how he failed to web himself up in time and fell straight into a dumpster, breaking his ankle in the process.

Which was totally weird. Because Peter Benjamin Parker always cared about what Tony knows about his vigilante night escapades. Ruby decided to let it go. When he's ready, she was sure that he'll tell her eventually.

"Uh, guys, not being a total kill joy, but I think we should head down now for our detention with Mr O'malley." Ned interjected at the middle of Ruby and Peter's verbal match about how Sam is the greatest hobbit in Lord of the Rings.

"Ugh. Didn't we establish earlier this afternoon that we're ditching?" Ruby reminded him.

"And it wasn't really our fault as well." Peter added.

Flash was being a dickhead again during PE class. It wasn't their fault that Ruby accidentally hit him with a basketball on the head. The guy looked like a raging bull when he threatened Ruby so Peter intervened by pushing him away from Ruby. He was literally too close. Like, so, so close. Of course, Flash didn't really like that and since he couldn't hit a girl (at least he still has morals), he punched Peter instead. Ned tried to break him off from punching Peter but he got elbowed in the face too.

Peter had had enough so he sucker punched Flash on the stomach. Conveniently, that was when Principal O’Malley arrived at the scene and saw Flash lying on the ground with all the three of them looming over him and the whole class watching. They got automatic detention while Flash got sent to the nurse office, thanks to their useless PE teacher who didn't bother to explain that it was Flash who threw the first punch.

"That might not actually be true." Both boys looked at Ruby in confusion. "I may have deliberately aimed badly when I was shooting the ball."

Ruby grinned when she heard her friends groan in frustration and then laughed at her confession. "I wouldn't fault you with that, though. That guy is a menace. He should be thankful you're not blowing his ass off the face of the earth."

"Eww, Ned! I would not be blowing any body parts attached to that boy. Especially not to someone named Eugene. No thank you."

They all cackled in laughter as they watched the sunset. Technically, they shouldn't be on school grounds anymore since they ditched and all but Ned couldn't really argue with his friends' logic about being in unexpected places in unexpected times. Which sounded a bit dumb, now that he has thought about it. Not that it really mattered.

With the sun down, they all agreed to call it a day.

"Let me take you home." Peter insisted after Ned took a left towards his street.

"I'm a strong and independent woman. I'll be fine walking home." Ruby was touched with Peter's sentiment, really, but his house was literally on the opposite direction of the tower and she didn't want to bother him with that. It wasn't like she couldn't protect herself if anything bad happened.

Peter could see that no argument could sway Ruby so he sighed and kissed her on the cheek. Ruby managed to contain her blush. This has been going on for a while. Ruby knew that Peter has always been a tactile person so she didn't pay attention at it at first. But ever since the fight with the symbiote thingy, Peter started to give her little hugs, pecks on the forehead and sometimes kisses, just like this one. Increasingly. Not that she was complaining, no. In fact she liked it, but it would be really nice if they've talked about it.

"Call me when you get home, okay?"

"Chill, man. It's a 20 minute walk. I'll be fine, grandpa."

Peter's nose crunched at the term. "Jeez. Don't call me that."

With a final smile, Peter turned back and went on his street. Ruby sighed as she continued to walk on. The Voice was still quiet and as much as it pained her to admit it, she has gotten quite used to its constant humming. Without it, her mind felt so silent and she felt so utterly alone.

Ruby had been completely submerged in her own thoughts that she almost screamed when she heard a sharp clang to her side. There was a poor black kitten rummaging the trash can for food. Pitying the little animal, Ruby reached down on her sling bag to grab an apple she forgot to eat for lunch earlier. She crouched down and snatched the kitten's attention from the trash can. It looked at her. Its eyes flickered from the apple that Ruby was handing out and at something behind Ruby.

Finally, it decided that taking food from a human stranger didn't seem very harmless and hurriedly bit into the apple.

"Good, kitty." The kitten purred as Ruby scratched her fingers behind its ears. She had been completely entranced and taken by the creature that Ruby didn't even hear the footsteps that were clumsily and hurriedly heading towards her.

Ruby didn't know why her neck stings so much and why did she feel so… dizzy? She felt an unfamiliar pair of hands grab her underneath her armpits, hauling her away. Ruby tried to resist but her whole body felt like jelly. She didn't understand what was happening but she did remember the last time she felt like this.

It was just before the Avengers came to rescue her.

As the realisation settled in, Ruby tried her best to scream and punch to no avail. She didn't get a good look of who her kidnapper was because as soon as she managed to open her eyes, a cloth was draped over her head. Knowing that there was no point to struggling, Ruby attempted to calm herself. She took deep steady breaths, each time reassuring herself that everything will be fine. But every single time she recited the mantra in her head, the more her chest constricted.

Ruby couldn't stop the tears that ran down her cheeks.

HYDRAtook her again.


	13. Within the Cosmic Universe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Hi guys! Just informing you that there would be mild violence in this chapter. Although I believe that it isn't really that graphic, I thought you'd appreciate the warning. Happy reading, my lovelies!

"You awake yet, girlie?"

A splash of cold biting water harshly slapped her face.

"Come on, we don't have time for your beauty sleep. Master's waiting."

Another bucket of water was splashed on her.

This time, Ruby's eyes slowly pried open and she barely managed to contain her surprise. "What the hell do you want from me, Mr O'malley?" She slurred, as she struggled against the ropes restraining her hands and feet against a chair.

She didn't know how long she was unconscious because after having herself hauled inside of what she was sure of was a van, she knew that the damn drug they injected her with had already taken effect. She wasn't able to keep track of where they were heading. Ruby remembered that she tried to pick out the auras of her captors but it seemed like her abilities were nullified as well.

"Stop that. It's no use. The evoracin in your system renders all your abilities useless." Snapped the principal (which she was sure isn't really anymore) when Ruby tried to blast her restraints with her powers. His face was close enough to Ruby's that she could see the faint outline of scars that littered his face.

Ruby smirked.

"I bet your drug hasn't affected my ability to spit on your face." Mr O'malley's expression contorted in fury as Ruby's saliva made contact with the centre of his face. Damn if she was spitting at the face of her school principal. She knew all along that there was something wrong with this man.

"You insolent brat!" With her senses still not in array, Ruby wasn't able to keep herself from crying out when the vile principal smashed a hammer down her forearm. A sickening crack of bones echoed in the room along with the sound of the door being opened.

"That's enough, servant!" A dark man clad in a long dark green cape reprimanded. Immediately, Mr O'malley dropped on the floor and kneeled. "I sincerely apologise, Master. I merely believe the girl lacked manners and needed to be disciplined."

"Even so, my orders were not to severely harm her. You are dismissed. Wait outside for your punishment." In a breath, the servant was out of the room. Ruby was still whimpering over the pain of her broken bones when the man took hold of her chin, forcing her to look at him.

Her eyes met with the malicious shade of azure. The very same ones she swore she would forget and bury deep within in her soul.

 

_"Now you've done it! Perhaps, it's time for you to be put in the Dark Room." A man in a lab coat shouted. "Get up, 216!" Clutching a steel pipe, he swung his arm down and slammed it across the subject's back. The girl bit her lip to prevent a whimper of agony from escaping her lips but her body had been battered enough today._

_Even then, she swallowed the blood that ran down her throat and looked straight at her aggressor's eyes and muttered in broken syllables, "I've told you a thousand times before. My name is Ruby." She was determined about not letting this people take away her identity. They had already taken too much. They took her family, her life, and she would be damned if they took away the only thing she had left in this world._

_"Ruby, Faith, Anne, or whatever the hell your name is, you're all the same to me. There's too much of you that your faces all morph into one in my mind. I'm sure you're the last one though. After all, he found what he was looking for in you." The scientist didn't wait for Ruby to stand up. Instead, he grabbed her hair at the base of her skull and dragged her towards the Dark Room. As much as she wanted to struggle, Ruby knew that it would only cause her pain. The man was incredibly strong. Ruby had only been held captive for about a week but she already knew that her aggressors weren't the typical criminals who would kidnap a child and ask for a ransom._ _Ruby believed that there was something even more sinister behind all what they were doing to her._

_Making her body as pliant as she could to ease the pain, Ruby let the scientist heave her inside the room. Although Ruby thought that there was no point to it, she opened her eyes as wide as she could to adjust to the darkness. There was really nothing to see at all. It was just her in the room, alone and chained down to the ground, at the centre of the room contained by four large walls._

_"Do not make a sound or he would be unpleased." The scientist said after making sure that her chains were secured and hastily left the room._

_Ruby felt her throat drying as she struggled to breathe in order to calm her wildly anxious heart. For the past few days, the torture had been repetitive. It had been all physical. Slashed skin, fractured bones, and bruised ribs. They were only trying to break her body. This time though, Ruby didn't know why but she had a feeling that it will be more than that._

_"Hello, 216."_

_With how dark it was, Ruby could only see a faint outline of a man. He was tall. Maybe even taller than her father, and she could tell that this man was drowned in power._

_"Or would you prefer if I call you Ruby?" Said girl didn't answer. "I'm sorry about my servant. I did tell him not to be too rough." Silence filled the room and soon enough, Ruby heared the man sigh._

_"I am Baron Mordo. Well, that's the name of the person I'm inhibiting at the moment anyway. You may just call me by that. Or Master would do just fine." To the right, Ruby heard a flutter of movement. She realised later on that the man strode forward and was standing right in front of her. She felt a hand brush the crown of her head. "You're very silent aren't you?"_

_Even then, Ruby did not speak._

_She had nothing to say. She didn't know what this man was playing at. "Not that it matters. Soon enough you'll be screaming for me to spare your life."_ _And that was when Ruby began to truly understand what the word terrifying meant._

_For over 2 years, Ruby had been held captive inside that room. Not being able to see even just a shed of sunlight or breathe without having to cough out blood. That wasn't what Ruby was scared of the most though. Mordo could slice open her chest ten thousand times more over and over again, and she wouldn't give a fuck. He could electrocute her head seven ways to Sunday and she still wouldn't give a fuck. It wasn't that she lost hope. She knew that no one would come to save her but even then she had enough faith in herself that at some point she could escape. So no, she didn't let the physical torture bother her._

_She only truly lost all the hope she had when she failed to escape. Thrice._

_When Mordo found out that physically breaking Ruby wasn’t cutting it anymore, he  would  give her hallucinations about her old happy life, about escaping and about having a good future to look forward to. Then he would take it all away, and Ruby would wake up to find herself in the same Dark Room with her captor,  just to imprint it on Ruby's brain that she could never have them anymore as he bashed her skull open just to see how long it would take for her to heal._

_"When will you decide to face me? Huh?" Mordo once shouted. "We'll settle this one and for all, Infinity!"_

_Ruby was conscious enough to see a glimpse of Mordo's eyes glinting with a malicious shade of azure, a light cruel enough to give her false hope._

 

"Mordo." Ruby spoke the name with disdain.

"We meet again, my dear Ruby." Ruby twisted her face out of Mordo's grasp which only made him chuckle lightly. Instead of touching his captive, Mordo decided to keep his distance first and sat at a chair directly opposite to the girl.

"I missed you. I heard you could finally use your powers, am I right? If I knew that sending you out to the outside world would trigger it, I would have done it sooner. Tell me, did Infinity introduced herself to you yet?"

 _'What the heck is this barbaric idiot on about? Infinity? He used to call me that sometimes when he was torturing me.'_ Ruby thought to herself but kept her silence. She continued to stare dead straight into Mordo's eyes. She'll be damned if she showed even a little bit of weakness from her previous and, well, as much as it pained to say it, her _current_ captor.

"Don’t you know? That voice in your head? If she wasn't so weak she would have taken over your body a long time ago and I wouldn't have to take the trouble of torturing hundreds of girls just to find and awaken her consciousness."

Ruby was still confused with what the hell Mordo was on about. Was he saying that V is this Infinity woman he's talking about and that she was abducted for the mere purpose of trying to track her down?

 **"I apologise, Ruby. But that would be correct."** Ruby gasped at the unexpected Voice she heard in her head. Understanding that Ruby wanted answers now, the Voice continued their silent conversation.

**"I am Infinity, and the one you are talking to is my brother, Eternity. We are cosmic beings and hence, we are merely entities that could acquire corporeal forms upon attaining vessels such as Mordo and yourself to whom we could mend our consciousness with your souls called a soul bond. In return, the vessel we inhabit could get a taste of our abilities. You can look at it as a mutualistic symbiosis if you like."**

_'What the hell is this?'_  Ruby said in dismay. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. It sounded like some plot of a bad scifi movie.

**"This is not the case with Eternity and Mordo. My brother has lost his way. He took over Mordo’s consciousness completely and destroyed their soul bond. Mordo’s consciousness had been forever lost. I tried to stop him but he was too powerful. We fought and I lost and so I needed to recuperate using your life energy. I apologise, Ruby. I would have told you but you weren't ready yet."**

"Ready for what, V?" Mordo, or rather, Eternity was shocked to hear Ruby shout. "Ready to fight whatever this Sibling shit you have! Is that why you had been showing me visions of what your abilities could do? All along you've been using me! Trying to harness my body so that you could take over once you were strong enough! You know what, V? Fuck you! Fuck you too Mordo! I don't want part with whatever shenanigans you both have!"

Ruby had been so hurt. She couldn't believe she lost her life and her parents over this. To heck with this cosmic beings shit. And Infinity could take her abilities with her and leave her body. She didn't want any of it in the first place so she hoped that the entity could just fuck off and get out.

The emotional pain combined with the ache of her broken bones drove her towards the edge of consciousness. The last thing she saw was Mordo's wide grin before she closed her eyes.

***

Ruby was woken up by the sound of the silent ticking clock. She sighed as she found herself tied down to a stiff bed now instead of a chair where she was restrained earlier. Perhaps it was too much to wish that it was all just one fucked up nightmare.

Ruby sighed. At least it seemed that she was alone for now.

She closed her eyes tight in an attempt to stop tears from flooding down the sides of her face. Taking two deep breaths, Ruby tried to reassure herself that everything will be alright. No big deal, right? HYDRA just captured her again. She survived 2 years with them so she could surely endure a little bit more. Plus, she wasn't really alone like before. She got Infinity now.

 _'V? Are you there?'_ Ruby tried to reach out for the voice in her head. She didn't know whether she should call her by her actual name when conversing or stick to the nickname she’s given the entity. Also, she wanted to apologise. Having a little bit of time to cool herself down, she realised that she didn't actually meant what she said to the cosmic being before.

After months of having Infinity as her constant companion, she knew deep in her heart that she could trust her. However, she wanted some answers. She wanted to understand what Infinity and Eternity's feud was all about. All she knew right now is that Eternity is using Mordo for whatever vile reason it was. As young as she maybe, she wanted to help Infinity no matter how small it could be. If it meant using her body as a vessel and honing her abilities, then she would do it. But first, she needs to hear Infinity's story.

_'V, come on. I'm scared. And we need to talk. Please.'_

Ruby waited for what seemed like forever. Still, she was met with silence. It was when she heard the door cracking open and Infinity still hasn't answered did she began to feel worried and anxious. She knew that there was something wrong. She couldn't feel the cosmic being at all.

It was as if Infinity had disappeared.

"Having trouble connecting with my sister?" She glared at Mordo who perched himself against the door frame, carrying a smirk on his face as he twiddled with a camera.

"Didn't she tell you that the bond between a cosmic being and its vessel depend upon the trust you've built with each other? Now that you've openly rejected Infinity, your soul bond had been weakened even more. Poor thing. She was already weak anyway. I could see the thread of your bond barely hanging onto your soul. Now, it just vanished. "

No.  _No._ This wouldn't do at all.

Ruby didn't mean all of that. She just said that in spur of the moment. Ruby have trusted Infinity. And, she still will. If they could just talk to clear everything up.

"Alright. Enough of my sister. Let's talk about the Avengers." Ruby glared at the man. It was all she could do, really. She’d rather look at him with hatred than cry her ass off waiting for someone to save her again.

"Imagine my surprise when I heard they've taken you in." Mordo continued. Ruby still didn't say anything. He shouldn’t dare bring her family into this. His issue was with her and Infinity. Ruby will kill Mordo with her bare hands.

"Do you think they'll come rescue you for the second time? Or would they be secretly thankful that a brat like you had been taken away from them? I wish they'll come for you so I could finally get rid of their filth in this world."

Ruby forced herself not to think about what the Avengers might be doing right now. Still, she cleared her throat before she spoke. "Are you dumb? Of course they wouldn't come at all. I'm just a charity case they've picked up in a mission. Spare yourself from the disappointed." Mordo only chuckled, which irritated Ruby even more. With that, Mordo assembled a video camera in front of her. He then stood next to Ruby's bed to face it and disgustingly caressed her arm, before shouting, "Servant!"

O'Malley entered the room with a medium sized suitcase which he placed on the table beside Ruby's bed.

"Let's see, shall we?"

Mordo's eyes glinted with malice as he dragged open the case and pulled out a cleaver.


	14. Worried, Mad, and Anxious

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi lovelies! Who watched End Game already? Imma watch it this weekend and I'm so hyped for it!!! Anyways, enjoy this chapter!

“Steven Grant, if I have to tell you one more time to pick up that sketchbook, I would burn your paintings.” The captain just raised an eyebrow at Tony’s threat. It wasn’t like the sketchbook was disturbing his work. Plus, it wasn’t even big enough to occupy a sixth of Tony’s desk. He could live having that around for at least an hour. When Tony noticed that Steve wasn’t reacting, he raised his head at gave him a narrowed look.   
     

      “All of them.” He threatened. “Don’t think I’m joking.”   
     

      Steve dramatically sighed before standing up from his seat on the couch to grab said notebook. He raised it up then shook it in his hands to emphasise that he had taken it already and placed it on the coffee table.   
           

       “Hey, I heard that there was this new Indo-Chinese restaurant that opened just around the corner a few days ago. I was thinking that maybe you wanna check it out with me?”   
         

          Tony’s hand abruptly stopped from whatever it was he was tinkering with and looked Steve straight in the eyes. _Is he asking me on a date?_ Perhaps... Steve has the same feelings as he did. Tony mentally shook his head. There was no way that this was the case. Although the man did slip up one time and accidentally outed his bisexuality, he always loved Peggy, in which is most likely the most probable reason why he never took on Natasha’s suggestions for blind dates and hook ups.   
         

          So yeah, totally no fucking way.   
         

         FRIDAY saved Tony from answering Steve’s suggestion by announcing Ruby’s arrival in the work lab. They heard a series of gentle knocks before the door swung open to reveal the young girl. Ruby was formally dressed, ready for a presentation at school with her bag slung across from her left shoulder.  
         

         “Good morning. I, uh, just wanted to say goodbye before I go to Uni.” She shyly stated. “Also...  could I please come home late? Because, uh,  Ned and Peter wanted to go to the cinema tonight. I promise I won’t be no later than 10pm.”  Ruby wasn’t looking at either men while she spoke. Yesterday, she accidentally sent Steve flying across the gym room while they were sparring. She was still feeling a bit guilty even though she knew that his healing factor took care of the bruises and they were literally gone within an hour.   
         

            “Sure thing, Princess. And oh, did you take the lunch our metallic friend fixed up for you? It was on the kitchen counter.” Steve and Tony were actually jealous. Bucky didn’t allow them to taste even a tiny piece of those California maki rolls he made.  
         

           “Yes, and I remember strict orders about not letting both of you lay a finger on them.”   
         

           “Rude.”   
           

            Steve rose from his seat and fixed Ruby’s collar as it was standing up from the back. Then he placed his large paw on top of Ruby’s head before smiling down at her. “Have fun with Ned and Peter.” Finally, Ruby looked at Steve and gave him a big smile.   
         

       “I’ll see you guys later!” With that, she waved goodbye and hurried towards the elevator.   
         

       “It looks like she’s still troubled about yesterday.” Tony commented. Steve went back to his seat and proceeded to turn to a blank page to start a new portrait of Tony.  “I’m sure she’s just overthinking like usual. She’ll be fine after spending a little bit of time at school and hanging out with her friends.”   


* * *

Tony and Steve’s day was spent lazily. It was only the two of them in the Tower today since Bucky had been called by Fury at noon about a new mission regarding HYDRA and the assassin twins were nowhere to be found. Knowing Clint and Natasha, they were probably out on a date without even realising that they were out in a date. Tony shook his head. He had lost count of how many times he wanted to bash both of their heads together for them to see that were practically married.   
             

         Well, anyways, as mentioned before, Tony and Steve had been lazy today. After finishing his project at the lab, Tony said that he’ll watch a movie and asked Steve if he wanted to come along. So this was the reason why they found themselves on a Star Wars movie marathon, curled up underneath a blanket on the communal room’s couch and munching on nachos. They were on the 4th one already and Steve still couldn’t get enough of how Tony mouthed the dialogue of his favourite characters along with the movie.   
             

            “Hey, didn’t Ruby say that she’ll be no later than 10?”   
             

            Steve looked at the wall clock and frowned. It was already 10:30pm. Most of the time, Ruby either calls or leaves a message if she knew that she will come home later than what she asked permission for. With a strange, anxious feeling in his chest, he paused the movie and pulled his phone out to call Ruby. He called twice but there was no answer both times.   
           

           “I’ll try Spider baby.”  Tony said and wasted no time to dial his number. 

           “Hey, Mr Stark! What’s up?” Peter happily greeted on the other line.  
           

            “Hey kid, how was the movie?”   
             

            “What movie?” Tony frowned and looked down at his phone to check if he did actually call Peter.  
             

            “Whatever you saw with Ruby and Ned?”   
           

            “Oh that. We didn’t actually go tonight. All the three of us got detention, which we skipped, and our mood for watching a movie  got ruined so we just stayed at the school rooftop before we all headed home.”   
           

             “You all headed home?” Steve’s head snapped up at Tony’s question.  
             

             “Uh... yes? I insisted to drop Ruby home but she said she was a strong independent woman. Her words not mine. Is there something wrong Mr Stark?”   
             

             “Ruby’s not home and she isn’t answering her phone.”  
             

              Immediately, both men knew that something bad happened to Ruby. Tony hanged up on Peter, threw off his blanket, and ordered Friday to run a visual recognition  while he began to start his remote control suit army to help find Ruby. Steve, on the other hand, sent an assemble notification to Bucky, Natasha and Clint. This was Ruby they were talking about. Both superheroes knew that it wasn’t a coincidence that she was missing. Maybe they were lucky and she was just being a rebellious teenager defying her supposed parents, but worst case scenario is she was dying on a ditch somewhere. Steve and Tony  didn’t even want to think about that. The girl attached herself to their lives so much that they couldn’t even fathom going back to living their lives where they didn’t had Ruby.   
           

               They heard a panicked knock and Tony looked to see Peter in his suit hanging beside the windowpane. He moved towards the window to let the kid in. As soon as Peter stepped inside, he took his mask off which revealed a guilt – stricken face and a tear eyed expression.  
           

               “I’m so sorry Mr Stark. This was all my fault.” The kid believably argued. “I shouldn’t have listened to her not wanting me to walk her home. I should have known better considering her history. What was I thinking? Oh my god, Mr Stark. I didn’t even get the chance to tell her I like her and now, she could be dying somewhere. I need, I need to – I ne- “ Peter continued to mutter undiscernible words in between his hurried breaths.

               

              He couldn’t stop having a nervous breakdown knowing the fact that the girl he liked was missing due to his own incompetence.   
           

              Tony struggled to support Peter’s dead weight upright so Steve led them to the couch to sit down. They allowed the boy to bow his head down in between his legs to calm himself and ride out his panic attack. After some time, Peter took a deep breath in and exhaled out loudly. He tried to clear his head but he was still overwhelmed by the sheer amount of anxiety he could feel about Ruby’s disappearance.   
       

              “Alright, first things first, son. This is not your fault.” Steve clarified as he placed a comforting hand on the boy’s shoulder. “You couldn’t have known. She decided to go back home by herself and something happened. It was no one’s fault. alright?” Peter nodded at the Captain’s words even though he didn’t believe them. However, now is not the time to play the blaming game.   
     

             “Second thing. You said you like Ruby?” Steve softly asked and Peter, once again, nodded his head in confirmation. He couldn’t believe he actually said that in front of them. Both Tony and Steve were practically Ruby’s fathers now and he just blurted out that he likes their daughter in the spur of the moment. If the ground could just open up and swallow him, that would be great. Thank you very much.   
       

             “We will have a discussion about this later on, young man. Capisce?” Tony sternly exclaimed.   
     

              “Yessir.”   
       

              Time passed and they all felt so dejected after Friday and Tony’s controlled army suits didn’t find any leads at all about Ruby’s whereabouts. The only thing they had was a CCTV camera feed showing Ruby and Peter bidding goodbye and  separating ways in a the street. That was at 7:20pm and everything after that seemed to be tampered with. That meant Ruby could have been missing for about 4 hours. Steve was able to restrain Peter from having half a mind of web slinging across the city and the next one with no solid lead by convincing him to conserve his energy for when they have enough information to send a rescue team.   
       

              It didn’t take long for the rest of the Avengers to arrive as well. Bucky came in first. He looked murderous in his black tactical vest with wild alert eyes as he walked in into the communal area. The sudden call for assemble had put his mind in a disarray especially since he was already in a mission, and he rarely receives a distress call in the middle of it as it was normal protocol for stationed Avengers not to be disturbed unless it was an emergency or a matter of national security.   
     

             Bucky looked at Peter whose eyes were still drying from tears. He narrowed his eyes and also noticed that Steve and Tony were abnormally on edge. He never saw these two lose composure in any of the missions they had, no matter how dangerous it got. So seeing them like this put even the winter soldier in some sort of unexplainable restlessness.  
       

            “Stevie, what’s the situation?”   
       

           “Ruby’s missing and we got no leads at all except for a CCTV camera feed.”   
       

            Bucky’s heart suddenly sank. Ruby was family and he would admit that he would go as far as locking himself up to the cryotank if that’s what it would take to get her back. Silently, he nodded his head at Steve and squeezed Tony’s shoulder who probably didn’t register that he arrived already. Bucky sat next to Peter and pulled the kid into a quick hug.   
         

             “Don’t worry. One thing I know about Ruby is that she’s damn stubborn. Girl wouldn’t back down without a fight.”  He whispered in assurance to which Peter just gave a small smile and a nod.   
         

             Now that Bucky’s already gathered his thoughts, he messaged Natasha and Clint about the situation just to hurry them up. He just came from a HYDRA related mission and Bucky couldn’t really shake the possibility that Ruby got kidnapped by them yet again. After all, it wasn’t even half a year since she got rescued, and from what he gathered from his missions, HYDRA never stopped looking for her. That was one of the maim reasons why he was mostly out of the tower. The Avengers agreed to make a fake trail to loose Ruby’s pursuers and Bucky was more than happy to volunteer for the job. Anything for Ruby’s safety.   
         

            After sending the message to the assassin twins, Bucky didn’t waste time and started to look at what he gathered from his previous missions. Although he knew that it was highly likely that HYDRA have Ruby, he didn’t want to present his idea without a concrete evidence. It wouldn’t help but aggravate the raw emotional response this situation was creating.   
           

            All their heads snapped up in attention when Natasha and Clint came in, armed and rushed. Natasha was clutching a glock 26 in her hands and Clint had an arrow ready to set loose any time. When they both saw that the communal floor had no one but the Avengers, they lowered their weapons down. Low enough to hold a conversation but high enough to fire in case a hostile came galloping in.   
         

           “The tower’s under attack. We already cleared from Level 13 down but the floors above that have too many hostiles for us to handle. No one has come to our private floors yet so that gives us time to formulate a plan. Anything on your mind, Cap?” Natasha asked in between puffs of air as she tried to catch her breath.   
           

             Unfortunately, Steve didn’t have time to reply because FRIDAY’s glitching voice interrupted their discussion.   
         

             “Boss... seems... virus... down...”   
         

             It didn’t take Tony to understand that his AI’s firewalls were down and that the tower had been fully compromised. All the LED screens that surrounded the communal area flickered on to reveal a man’s face they’ve never seen before, grinning maliciously on the screen.  
           

             “Hello Avengers. How y’all doing? Just in case you’re wondering, yes, I do have a precious little princess in my hands. Don’t worry, she’s very fine.” The man stepped out of the camera’s view to show a bed behind him. Tony could hear both Clint and Bucky snarl at the screen when they saw Ruby tied onto it. Her neck was craned to the side as she struggled to look at the camera. Tony sighed in relief to see fire still swarming in her eyes.   
           

              _That’s my girl._    
         

             Hurriedly, Tony pulled out an AI that was still in the making. It wasn’t advanced enough and fully developed yet but he was confident that it could track where this feed was filming. Right at the start, Tony knew that this was being filmed live and thanked whoever was there above that this man was stupid enough to send them a live camera feed. It gave them more than enough of a lead to track Ruby down.   
         

             “First and foremost, let me introduce myself. I am Baron Mordo, vessel of Eternity, and if you haven’t figured it out yet, Ruby’s captor for 2 years.” The man’s brown eyes glinted a menacing shade of azure for a moment, very much like how Ruby’s eyes became fiery orbs when using her abilities. Bucky wanted to gouge his eyes out and feed them to a stray dog. This was the monster who tormented Ruby and he’d be grateful to give him a slow and painful death.   
           

               “It has been nice to get re-acquainted with her. I never knew that this little brat would be my one way ticket to killing the Avengers. How’s my dear lackeys by the way?  I really, really hope they’re giving you guys trouble.” Mordo continued while he strided next to Ruby. Everyone watching the screen were silent. All of them were waiting for thee man’s next move.   
         

              Nobody was prepared though when he pulled out a cleaver underneath the bed and slashed it down Ruby’s stomach. Her scream echoed in the room along with Peter’s worried shouts and Tony’s sharp curses. On the screen, Mordo chuckled as Ruby’s scream was reduced to whimpers of agony.   
           

             “Tsk. Tsk. You aren’t healing as quick as I thought. I guess this is what happens when Infinity decides to diminish a soul bond. Shall we test how long you’ll be completely healed if I dive this even deeper?” Mordo applied more pressure onto the cleaver and Ruby’s whimpers yet again turned into a scream as the sharp knife prodded into her already gushing wound.   
           

            “I apologise for this one. I forgot how she screams like a banshee. Anyway, you’re probably wondering why I contacted you. To answer your question, I am just proving a point to this brat. I made a deal that I’ll spare one of you if you come and save her. Not that it matters. You all will be dead at the end of this hour.”   
           

            “Now, as much as it had been fun, I need to cut this short. There are other things I’d like to experiment with. Ruby, would you please be a dear and say your last words?” The girl just silently looked at the camera. Even though she didn’t utter a single word, her eyes spoke volumes and Steve couldn’t help but choke down sob at her predicament.   
           

“No? Okay then, don’t tell me I didn’t give you a chance.”   
             

And the feed ended with Ruby’s scream yet again.   
             

              Natasha couldn’t stop herself from shooting the screen repeatedly. Each click against the trigger become more forceful and forceful. When she ran out of bullets, she dug her hand down her holster to grab a new magazine, but Clint took a hold of her wrist and pulled her face to his chest.   
           

              “Hey, that’s enough, Tasha.” He said as he ran his fingers down her hair. “That’s enough.”

               Natasha didn’t shed a tear though. Because tears are useless and won’t do anything good to help the situation. Instead, she dragged her arms across Clint’s back and pulled him closer for a moment before she looked back at her family with a blank expression. Now was not the time to be emotional. They had someone precious to save.   
           

                Tony let out a massive victory yell to which the Avengers hoped to be good news. “I got a location.” He typed something really quick on the screen and a hologram of a run down 3 storey building in Ohio popped up. “Ruby should be there.” Tony pointed at the heat signatures highlighted on the 3rd floor.   
           

                A bang on the door jerked their attention away from the hologram. Mordo’s lackeys finally reached the communal floor. Even though the elevator and the door to the stairs were sealed and locked with vibranium, Natasha and Clint knew that they would get through them sooner than later. These creatures were laced with something. Maybe it was magic. But whatever it was, they made them abnormally strong and fast.   
         

               “We’ll handle this. I already called in Ant man, Falcon and War machine for back up. Go get Ruby back.” Bucky calmly said as he dislodged the strap of the M249  hanging on this shoulder.   
         

                “Go!”   
         

               “Wait!” Steve and Tony paused and turned to see Peter with his mask back on. “Take me with you.”   
         

               Peter thought that they were going to argue about how it was much safer for him to stay and help defend the tower so he was surprised when Tony only nodded and the Captain signalled for them to get moving.   
       

          _‘Hang on Ruby.’_ Peter thought as he webbed himself up across the city. _‘We’re coming for you.’_


	15. How It all Began

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Holy hell, guys! I watched End game and I think I felt my soul leave my body at the end of that movie. Honestly, it was the best. Have you all watched it? Anyways, enjoy the chapter! Thank you for all the people who gave kudos!

“Fuck you, motherfucker.”

        Ruby puckered her lips to spat on Mordo’s face when he ventured close enough. She smirked in victory when she saw that it landed dead straight on the cosmic being’s nose. In all honesty, she was very tired. Instead of lying on the bed, she was now suspended from the ceiling with her hands shackled with vibranium chains. Infinity’s voice still hadn’t turned up in this poor torture party and every now and then, she would remember that the Tower was in attack. It didn’t help that Mordo was also playing mind games with her.

        “Perhaps, my sister won’t be coming back anymore. A pity.” Mordo hissed. “What do you say, Ruby? Would you like a quick death, or a slow one?”

        Ruby’s stomach twisted in knots. What kind of sadistic question was that?

She didn’t get the chance to respond because the next thing she felt was the biting shock of electricity that run from tips of her fingers down to her toes. Her body wildly failed. The manacles around her wrists dug deeper in her flesh as she swung; her weight felt much heavier as she breathed through her nose.

        Mordo chuckled in glee. “Actually, it’s more fun if I don’t give you a choice.”

        Raising his hand, he took hold of Ruby’s cheeks and pinched them between his thumb and forefinger, forcing her to look up. Mordo’s eyes glinted azure and Ruby felt the beginnings of scorching heat from her stomach. Soon, it spread on onto her whole body.

        Mordo was burning her.

        Not with actual physical fire, no, but he was using his magic to increase her core temperature. She could see fumes coming off of her skin. Patches of her arms were melting, and blood trickled down everywhere.

        Not willing to show any weakness, Ruby swallowed and spoke, “I-Is th-this all y-you’ve g-got?”

        The gloved hand caging her face released its grip only to backhand her face so hard. It was loaded with so much force that she felt the skin of her left cheek peel off. She screamed but she didn’t get the time to recover because Mordo kneed her stomach, hastily knocking the breath out of her. Again and again, the man kicked, punched and slashed. Most of them landed on raw flesh and Ruby couldn’t take the pain anymore.

        Much to her dismay, Ruby opened her mouth to beg, “P-please, no m-more. P-please.”

        Her aggressor did not hear acknowledge nor address her countless pleas. He only stopped when he saw that the girl was not responding anymore. He placed two fingers on her neck and grinned when he did not feel a pulse.

        Not even a single slow beat.

 

* * *

        “ **Ruby**.”

        She slowly turned her head to the direction of the voice and cracked her eyes open. She was back to the place where she first saw the embodiment of the Voice and immediately, Ruby knew that it must be Infinity who called out for her.

        “V! Where are you?” Ruby shouted back.

        Overwhelmed with joy, she pulled herself up from the grass where she was lying down and frantically hoped that Infinity would call out again. Her prayers were answered when she heard her silky voice softly whispering her name.

        Ruby continued to follow the direction of her voice. The closer she got, the more anxious she felt. Despite the heavy feeling of uncertainty in the air, she treaded through the rocky path until she reached a humungous angel oak tree perched in between of two diverging paths.

        Lying down on one of its roots, was a woman.

        She was clad in a golden yellow dress that looked almost like her second skin. The second she sensed that Ruby was approaching, she raised her head up to assume a sitting position and beckoned for Ruby to sit in front of her.

        Ruby hadn’t seen Infinity’s face before, even in her visions, but she was sure that the voice that occupied her mind for so long belonged to her. Now that she could properly distinguish her features, she could tell that her eyes were the same shade of fiery orbs that Ruby’s eyes turn into when she uses her abilities.

        However, there was an unmistakable sense of tiredness around her eyes and demeanour that Ruby could sense.

        Ruby’s eyes widened when it finally hit her.

        “V, are you dying?” She asked.

        The cosmic being gave a small smile but slowly nodded her head.

        “I had been alive for very long, my child.” She started.

        “After my brother and I began our quarrel, the purpose of my existence had been solely reduced to one thing: to find that one unique person to bond my soul with in order to stop my brother.” Infinity reached out a hand and cupped her right cheek.

        “Then I found you.”

        Ruby smiled at the cosmic being and raised her eyebrows to let her continue.

       “After millions of years of searching, I finally found you. For the first time, I had hope that I could defeat my brother. He has become uncontrollable. He had so much ambitions. Although he was an ambitious man to begin with, his goals slowly turned sinister. He had plans to ravage, not only your world, but the whole of universe. The same universe that we have guided, cultured and looked after for.”

        With a new profound courage and sympathy she felt for her friend, Ruby took Infinity’s hand and looked her straight in the eye.

        “Show me."

        Infinity smiled. Her eyes glowed with the rage of burning fire, and she took Ruby to where it all began.

        " **At the beginning, there was nothing."**

        Darkness filled Ruby’s vision. She couldn’t see a single thing, couldn’t hear the soft whisper of the wind, and couldn’t even feel the warmth of the sun against her skin.

**“And out of nothing came a massive bang.”**

        Suddenly, Ruby was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of an explosion. Her eyes were narrowed as she shielded them from its blinding brightness. Soon, the blast settled and she heard Infinity’s voice again.

        **“This made a singularity where my brother and I came from. We had been there before the universe began. Perhaps, you could call us its keeper. We guided the evolution of life forms from one galaxy to another, cultivated the planets in every solar system, and looked after the development of civilisations.”**

        Ruby watched in amazement as the creation of the universe flashed before her eyes. She couldn’t believe and comprehend even the slightest complexity of what she was seeing but there was two things that she understood. First, was that all that’s created were good and second, the life of the universe fuelled both the cosmic entities’ hearts. Ruby didn’t even know whether she was worthy enough to know all these things.

**“But then, the people, not only in this world but in all of the galaxies began to worship different gods.”**

        Tribes and tribes of different people and different cultures swung past Ruby’s vision. They all had various and unique names for their gods. Rituals and prayers were spread all over their communities and societies.

          **“And Eternity got mad. He didn’t understand why these people were worshipping imaginary gods when it was him and I who made all things possible in their world. He also didn’t understand that imagination is an ability we’ve bestowed to intelligent beings, and with this, they learn to devise theories for incomprehensible concepts.”**

Just like a movie, Ruby saw through her own naked eyes how the cosmic beings’ creations developed into more advanced life form.

**“As time passed by, these life forms we created used their own different faiths to explain the things they couldn’t understand. Eternity became obsessed with the notion that our creation far long gone with their faith that they couldn’t recognise their own makers. So he started to destroy them.”**

        Infinity showed Ruby everything that Eternity annihilated. She saw him, albeit a different face but with the same azure eyes, burning a planet down with its inhabitants. He even altered the pull of gravity of two galaxies, causing them to collide and damning all the life forms that lived within them. For a long time, Eternity took vessels, leaving a trail of dead bodies as he finished with them.

**“He said he wanted to cleanse this filth of the universe and start one anew. One that would worship us, and only us. I didn’t share his views. I openly defied him when I expressed my opinion about how I find the independency of our creation quite admirable. And so, the fighting began.”**

        One blink and Ruby was taken back to the present where she was holding Infinity’s hand.

        The cosmic being released her hold and lied back down onto the ground as if she was just solemnly waiting for the time of her death. With all of the things she knew now, Ruby’s mind was set into helping Infinity. It came from the entity itself. The whole universe is at danger and if she was the one person who can make a difference in saving it, then she would die trying to stop Eternity.

        “V, no. Please don’t go just yet. Together, Remember?” Ruby pleaded. “We could defeat Eternity together. Come on, I know you can take my life energy, and then we could go back.”  

        Infinity looked at Ruby.  Truly, she was touched by the young girl’s sentiment but there was one thing she was forgetting.

        “Ruby, you’re already dead.”

        Infinity sighed at the gasp that came out of the girl. “I really appreciate it, my child. But look.” She pointed at Ruby’s chest.  “The light of your candle is not there anymore. We could not go back and defeat my brother. It’s over.”

        The cosmic entity expected Ruby to accept the situation and move on. She hoped for the young girl’s safe and joyous journey to the afterlife where she would spend the last of her time before being reborn to a new life. Hence, Infinity was completely taken aback when Ruby took hold of her hand and faced her with determined eyes.

        “I don’t understand how you could see my life energy but I’m telling you that I’m not dead. Even if I am, I’ll defy all the laws of nature to come back to life. So get your shit together because we have one son of a bitch to kill.”

        The point at which their hands were in contact began to glow that reminds Ruby of a star. Both women gave each other a small smile as they felt their soul bond reform and rekindle. But it wasn’t the same one, no. This one was new and stronger.

        Ruby had never felt this kind of power.

        One that could probably see eye to eye to the one above all.

* * *

            Mordo’s eyes widened in shock when he saw Ruby’s eyes open just as he was going to burn her into ashes.

        “You had no pulse.”

        He watched in disbelief as the girl’s eyes glowed with fiery amber and her melted skin healed back to their normal supple texture.

        “It takes more than that to kill me, Eternity.”

        Wasting no time, Ruby formed luminescent spheres in her hand that resembled sizzling magma. She aimed continuously for Eternity’s head but the bastard had been quick. Deflating her attacks with an energy shield that was slowly bending against the spheres’ force, Eternity began to chant and mobilise a spell with his left hand.

        “By the demons of Denak, unleash!”

        Ruby’s eyes widened in horror as numerous portals opened all over the place, spitting out not one, not two, but regiments of demonic hell spawns.

        “V, what the hell is this?”

**“This is Eternity’s army. Denak, the former master of these demons, is under his command after recognising Eternity as the father of all creation. Together, they had been terrorising thousands of galaxies before they came to Earth.”**

        She felt her heart slam against her ribcage because no matter how powerful she got, she wasn’t an expert in combat at all, but now was not the time to fret. She placed all her worries aside and focused on the matter at hand.

        To defeat Eternity.

        With the swarm of demons in the area, Ruby found it hard to locate Eternity. She tried to search for his consciousness but that required extreme calm and focus, something she couldn’t afford when she was trying to protect herself from the hellish beings attacking her. Out of luck, she saw his cape in the corner of her eye but noticed that he was escaping.

        The man created a portal, and as though he sensed that someone was looking at him, he turned around to smirk at her.

        “See you around, Ruby.” Eternity jumped in and the portal closed.

        God damn it.

        Beheading a demon with an energy beam, Ruby looked up to see all of them heading for her direction. Overwhelmed, she blasted the demon closest to her, pushing the rest that behind it out of the way. The one to her right managed to take a hold of her, her arm almost broke under its tight grip. Pushing all her energy into the palm of her left hand, she grabbed the demon’s claw and flung it away. Her arm was released and demon turned into ashes.

        Ruby was too occupied in dealing with her enemies at the front that she couldn’t manage to take care of those behind her too. She didn’t notice the demon that pounced behind her, ready to slash the back of her head with its talons until Infinity screamed in her head.

**“Ruby, behind you!”**

        It was too late. The demon was already within attacking distance when she turned her back so Ruby had no choice but to close her eyes and prepare for impact.

        A moment later, she didn’t feel a thing at all. Not even a tiny sting.

        Cracking her eyes open, she saw the demon’s talons covered in webs and she couldn’t help the smile that crept out of her face. Looking to her side, she saw Peter in his iron spider suit swinging down and leaving demobilised demons in his path.

        Not letting the small victory of having someone fighting on her side put her guard down, Ruby kicked the demon in front of her before moving down to meet Peter. She didn’t care that she was in the middle of battle, trying to fight for her life. She did die, and now she was alive again so fuck everything if she wanted to embrace a person she thought she would never see again.

        “Ruby, holy shit. You look so damn badass like this.” Peter exclaimed excitedly before he all but dove and wrapped Ruby in her arms. He tucked his face on the crook of her shoulder, and despite the mask, Ruby could feel his breath against her neck.

        “Don’t ever scare me like that again.”

        “Only if I want to give you a heart attack.” Ruby felt Peter smile and she raised her arms to embrace him back tightly. Unfortunately, the moment had to be cut short because Tony came flying in his Iron Man suit along with Captain America in his mission mode face. Tony procured a make shift nano-shelter from his suit for temporary regroup.

        “Hey, Princess. We’re glad that you’re alive and all but there are literally hundreds of demons here.” Tony gestured to the battlefield.

        “I’ve called for backup but we still need as much help as we can get. You can cuddle with your boyfriend later after Steve and I are done fussing about you, okay? Now tell us what the situation is.”

        Ruby’s face turned red at what Tony called Peter and she gave Steve a smile when he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

        “It’s complicated.”

        Steve frowned at that explanation, but Ruby didn’t let him speak and just continued.

        “For now, all you need to know is that all these demons were transported here by Mordo using his portals. Well, he’s actually Eternity and got something to do with me and Infinity. He escaped with a portal so he isn’t here anymore.”

        Looking at their confused faces, Ruby sighed.

        “As I’ve said, it’s complicated. I’ll explain properly later so for now, please help me get rid of these demons.”

        Tony and Steve decided to set aside their questions first and nodded for Ruby to continue as if they knew that she had a plan in her head already.

        “I want you to give me some time. Fight off as much demons as you can.” Ruby pleaded. “I think I can kill the rest all at once, but these powers that I have are still fairly new to me. I need extreme focus to differentiate their consciousness with yours so that when I blast them, I wouldn’t accidentally kill the three of you as well.”

        That wasn’t exactly why she asked them to do that. Although part of it was, she just didn’t want them nowhere near her when she executes her plan. Despite being able to filter her allies out, Ruby will literally become a time ticking bomb so having them as far away as possible would mean that they wouldn’t absorb as much impact as they would.

        “Okay, sweetheart. We trust you.”

        The three men left the make shift shelter and each took a designated area to clear. Tony had been doing well with the new micro-missiles he installed in his suit. They were more compact and much more explosive. He cheered in victory when he had a small group of demons dusted.

        Steve wondered whether Peter was alright. He knew that in the boy’s haste to find Ruby, a demon managed to claw the back of his thigh. It wouldn’t stop bleeding but Peter had been fast to reassure both Steve and Tony that he was alright. His healing factor was just taking some time to kick in because the wound wasn’t inflicted from a human source. Distracted with his thoughts, Steve barely dodged a talon to his temple. He pummelled his shield to the hollow of the demon’s throat before kicking it on the shin, effectively immobilising it.

        Steve shook his head.

        He should really focus at the task at hand.

        Peter was busy badmouthing the demons as he made his way through a pack of them. “Dude! Didn’t your mama teach you that doing that is rude? Wait,” The arachnid paused in thought. “Oh, hey, I rhymed.”

        He didn’t wait for a response. Peter tossed a string of web, wrapped it around the demon’s waist and used it to pound his fellow hell spawns.

_Talk about getting a taste of their own medicine._

        It didn’t take long for all the three superheroes to notice that something was beginning to happen with Ruby. She was hovering above the ground, a glowing amber globe resting in the middle of her chest. Her eyes were wide and twinkled with fiery. Slowly, the globe grew brighter and bigger.  Now the demons all looked up at her. Entranced by the sight, the fighting all but stopped as they contemplated what the hell was going on in silence.

        Steve saw Ruby smirk and the next thing they heard was an explosion.

        He momentarily crouched down and raised his shield to cover himself as it got too bright and too warm to breathe. After a couple of seconds, he opened his eyes and couldn’t hide the gasp of surprise when he saw all the demons reduced into ashes. Scanning his surroundings, he saw Tony pulling himself up on a standing position. Relieved that he was alright, Steve immediately looked for Peter whom he found perched on a piece of rubble.

        It took him a while to realise that Ruby’s explosion took the _whole_ building down. Perhaps even the next three next to it.

        Steve quickly made his way to the boy.

        Meanwhile, Tony hurriedly approached Ruby’s location after he saw her literally fall from high up in the air to flat down on the ground. He was definitely sure that he heard a sickening crack of bones upon the impact but when he reached the girl, he was disturbed by her unharmed form despite of the pool of blood she was lying on.

        “Cap!” Tony shouted. “Ruby’s down!”

        Both Steve and Peter galloped to where Tony was kneeling beside the unconscious teenager. Tony turned her over, just to check to for any injuries, but there was really no wound at all that could indicate where all this blood came from. Not even a scratch. In fact, Ruby’s whole body was slightly glimmering, still enveloped in that amber glow.

        “Ruby, wake up, Princess.”

        They all waited but she was unresponsive.

        “Friday, scan please.” Tony ordered in attempt to find out what was wrong with her. So far, he couldn’t see any physical damage so he couldn’t understand why Ruby wasn’t responding at all.

        “Nothing seems to be wrong with her, Boss.” Friday started.

        “Her pulse is stable. No open wounds. No visible physical trauma. Looks like Ruby is perfectly in good condition.”

        Tony clicked his tongue in irritation. How the hell was he supposed to help the girl if he couldn’t even identify the source of the problem? Steve must have noticed his apprehension because he lightly clapped Tony’s shoulder to get his attention and smiled, “Let’s take her home, okay?”  Tony nodded and positioned Ruby in a comfortable position in his arms to fly home.

        Before he took off, Steve caught his attention once more.

        “I think we could use some advice from Dr Strange.”

        Tony didn’t even hesitate before he answered, “I’ll give him a call.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Sorry guys, that kinda got heavy with Eternity and Infinity's history. But hey, at least now you know their past. And just so you know, Infinity and Eternity are actual Marvel comic characters but their characterisation in this story is a product of my own. That was because I was too lazy to read any comics involving them so I just made their own background history. Lol. 
> 
> Thank you for still reading on this far and I hope to see you guys on my next chapter!


	16. Who She Really Was

As the Earth’s protector from inter-dimensional threats, Dr Stephen Strange was ashamed to admit that he had been sloppy in performing his job thoroughly. He should have placed Mordo’s situation above everything in his priorities. Due to having Mordo as his previous ally, the doctor was naïve enough to think that the issue involving him would not escalate even further.

            Boy, was he wrong.

        Not in a million years would he have expected that Mordo had been possessed by Eternity himself. Stephen didn’t know about it until he sensed a strong pull of mystic energy from a spell being incanted involving the demon dimension and immediately transported himself to the Avengers Tower to warn his fellow heroes.

        What was even worse is that he knew that having a cosmic entity completely destroy a soul bond without destroying a vessel, would mean that Mordo himself willingly agreed to give up his physical body and consciousness to provide Eternity a powerful, permanent corporeal form.

         Stephen was torn between feeling angered by the fact that Mordo gave Eternity the leeway he needed to effectively destroy this dimension, and feeling thankful that his consciousness was forever lost, because the doctor was still unsure if he would be able to kill his previous ally when it comes down to it, despite of his betrayal. Nonetheless, none of this could change the fact that two cosmic entities, who he knew had bad history between them, were residing here on earth.

        And one of them was right in front of him.

        The doctor watched as Tony placed the unconscious girl on the bed while Steve and Peter automatically assumed their positions on the either side of it.

 _Ruby_. Stephen recalled Tony referring to the girl with that name.

        After settling Ruby in, Tony disengaged his armour and walked towards Stephen who offered his hand for greeting.

        “Tony.”

        “Stephen.” Tony grasped his hand in a tight handshake. “Do whatever you can. Please.”

        If one listened closely, they would hear the slightest tremor in Tony’s voice so with a firm nod, Stephen took a step forward and began to chant a spell that will probe into her mind. If he could manage to access her memories, perhaps, he could pinpoint the exact moment and detail that caused her lack of physical response. Without even digging in too deep, Stephen instantly perceived something different about Ruby.

        He noticed that her soul does not belong to this dimensional reality.

**“Hello Stephen Strange, the keeper of the eye of Agamotto and the time stone.”**

        Barely managing to stabilise his mystic energy, Stephen focused until his consciousness was face to face to Infinity. The entity’s appearance surpassed his wildest imagination. Her eyes burned with the rage of fire and he could feel the power surging off from the cosmic being, overwhelming his own consciousness. Infinity smiled at the doctor, but he couldn’t decide whether that smile was laced with kindness or a hidden motive.

 **“What is it with you, humans, always thinking about the worst?”** Infinity spoke when she heard Stephen’s thoughts. **“I assure you, I’m all about what’s best for Ruby and the Universe. I am not Eternity.”**

        Caught off-guard, Stephen tried to look as calm as possible. Even though the being didn’t seem hostile, he didn’t want to take risks. “Regarding Ruby, why is she unresponsive?”

        Taking a step forward, Infinity began to explain, **“It was her first time to use my abilities to this extent. Eradicating all of the demons took a toll on her vital energy. I temporarily delayed all her life processes except for her blood circulation to speed up the replenishment of her vital energy.”**

        Stephen stared at Infinity, who just continued to grin at him with humour, just to look for any hidden dishonesty. Contented to know that the being was telling the truth, he could have left, placed his consciousness back to the reality, and deliver the news to the three superheroes waiting for an update about Ruby’s condition. However, he couldn’t really help but wonder about what he just observed earlier.

        “That answers Ruby’s physical situation. But how about her soul? She wasn’t from this reality at all, isn’t she? Who is she?” The doctor asked.

        Infinity was amazed at how sharp Stephen was. The entity did all she could do to mask her soul with spells. Not because she knew what she did was wrong, but because she knew that knowing about what she had done could cause anguish to some of the people involved. And yet, the sorcerer managed to see through her spells.

**“I’m only going to tell this story once and so, I’d like everyone to be present.”**

        With a blink of an eye, Stephen found himself in front of Steve and Tony in an unfamiliar living room of what seemed to be a family house.

        “What the heck is this, Stephen?” Tony demanded. “Where are we? Where’s Ruby.”

        Confused with the situation himself, Stephen answered the parts that he could, “Ruby is fine. Infinity, the sister of Eternity who took control of Mordo, is residing within her and healing her. I don’t know where we are but I believe that this is Infinity’s doing.”

        “Hold up there, Doctor. What is this about Infinity and Eternity? What are they?” Steve asked, which was reinforced by Tony’s nod as well. They were so tired about going with the flow with Ruby’s situation and they just wanted some real answers now.

        “They are cosmic beings, meaning they were highly involved with the creation of the cosmos. Siblings with the same purpose, they cultured the universe together. However, Eternity decided to rebuild the universe, destroying galaxies after galaxies, but Infinity did not stand by that and so they took vessels to fight each other. Eternity took Mordo and Infinity took Ruby by forming soul bonds. That’s where Ruby got her abilities.”

        Stephen explained the best he could. Clearly, he could see that both men were disturbed by this fact. Steve wondered about how this feud was affecting not only Ruby but a whole lot of civilians too, whereas Tony took offence at the fact that Infinity was using Ruby’s body.

        They didn’t have time to voice out their opinions because a girl who uncannily looked like Ruby came into view. She was wearing blue ripped jeans and a dark brown leather jacket on top of a stripped white shirt. Dropping her bag onto the floor, she passed through Tony like he was a ghost and lazily dropped her ass on the couch.

        “Mom! Dad! I’m home!”

        Tony gasped loudly when he saw a brunette woman with an arc reactor at the middle of her chest come into the living room. It was covered underneath the thin layer of her shirt but Tony wouldn’t mistake that glow. This person was him. But as a woman.

        And obviously, she was married to Steve freaking Rogers because said man came out of a door that looked like his office when Ruby called for him. Both female stark and Rogers number 2 had a ring on their finger.

        “Tony, I’m seeing this correct, right?” Steve asked to confirm, but Tony was too flabbergasted to answer.

        “We’re on an alternate dimensional reality. This is earth 3490. Infinity wanted us to see this, though I’ve no idea why.” Stephen explained.

        “Hello Sweetheart.” Their attention snapped back to Rogers number 2. “Why don’t you go take a nap first before we get dinner? Have a little rest. All these activities you’ve been doing are quite exhausting to your heart.”

 _‘Ruby’_ rolled her eyes as she chewed on her gum. “No, it isn’t. The doctor said my heart is getting stronger now. No need to worry, old man.”

        “Okay, Princess. Stop sassing you father. Up you go, Ruby.” Female Stark reprimanded.

        Steve and Tony tried not to wince when they heard the nicknames they call Ruby being used by their counterparts.

 _‘Ruby’_ nodded and kissed her parents on the cheeks before going upstairs. Hastily, she hopped up to her room and immediately opened her wardrobe to take a change of clothes. Just as she was getting ready to change, the three dimensional hoppers saw her face contort into pain.

        Tony watched worriedly as she unintentionally dropped her clothes to clutch at her chest. He wanted to gallop over and help the girl but he knew that it would be useless, so he stood, literally in front of her, and watched as she clawed at her chest and tried to breathe as much as she could.

        “She’s having a cardiac arrest. Tony, oh my god. Ruby’s having a cardiac arrest.” Steve anxiously stated and unconsciously gripped Tony’s hand with his. He knew that this wasn’t technically their Ruby but Steve couldn’t help the twinge of alarm upon seeing someone, who looked exactly like Ruby, die in front of him.

        The girl was kneeling on the floor now, hands still clutched tightly on top of her chest. Her eyes were wide, instinctively looking for something that could help her. But it was no use. Tony could tell the exact moment when she breathed her last breath.

        Unconscious, Ruby’s body fell haphazardly on the floor with a loud thud.

        Tony’s grip on Steve’s hand got tighter, “Steve, She’s dead. The girl is fucking dead, Steve! Where the hell are her parents?”

        As if hearing Tony call for them, the door opened to reveal their counterparts hurrying to get to Ruby, but even before they managed to take a step into the room, time stopped.

        Female Stark and Rogers number 2 were literally frozen in their place with shock painted on their faces as they saw their lifeless daughter on the floor. The curtain stopped moving mid-swing, just as it was flapping back to its natural position.

        Then a portal opened and out stepped a woman.

        “Infinity.” Stephen told his companions. He immediately recognised her because her eyes glowed with the burning rage of fire as he saw a moment ago. “This must be her vessel before she bonded with Ruby.”

 **“Just when I’ve finally found my perfect match. My luck is indeed the worst, seeing you die. My poor child.”** Infinity crouched down next to Ruby’s body. She placed her hand in the middle of her chest and for a moment, Ruby’s body arched up, as if the cosmic being was sucking something out of her body.

        “That’s Ruby’s soul.” Stephen pointed at the glowing orb in the entity’s hand when he saw Steve and Tony’s confused expressions.

**“It is not the end for you yet, my dear. You will live, and together we will fulfil my purpose.”**

With that, Infinity took a step back into the portal and travelled to the reality to where the three superheroes originally came from. They found themselves inside a bedroom now. There was a couple they didn’t recognise who were sleeping on the bed. Clearly, the lady was pregnant going by the fact that she had a bump. Infinity knelt beside the lady and placed the glowing orb on top of her bump. Slowly, it was taken in by the woman with a resonant glow of bright blue that temporarily flashed against the dark.

        Then Infinity whispered in the lady’s ear, **“You will name your daughter, Ruby.”**

        Then everything turned black and the three superheroes found themselves in a grass field, standing underneath an angel oak tree. Tony and Steve couldn’t believe what they just saw. Ruby was actually their counterparts’ daughter in earth 3490 who died and was given another chance at life by Infinity.

        Both men didn’t really know what to feel about knowing this and the fact that despite being given a second chance, the cosmic being clearly needed her for something.

 **“The soul is quite a complicated, yet fascinating thing. It knows that you are Ruby’s parents no matter what reality it is.”** Infinity exclaimed, looking straight at Steve and Tony’s eyes.

 **“I never intended to keep this from Ruby. Perhaps it was because I knew that this deed of mine was what caused her history with HYDRA and so, I feared when the time comes when I have to tell her about this.”** Infinity wasn’t like her brother at all. She cared for their creation, but she couldn’t help but feel like a hypocrite when she was using their own creation to defeat Eternity.

**“Ruby is my responsibility and I didn’t get to apologise to your counterparts but I will apologise to you now. I am truly sorry for what Ruby had to endure. However, I wouldn’t be able to settle this feud with Eternity without her. So please, help me stop him.”**

        Tony and Steve was still torn whether to trust Infinity. She was the sole reason why Ruby sometimes wake up at night, screaming at something that wasn’t even there, and why she lost the parents she grew up with for 18 years of her life. But Infinity was also the reason why they met Ruby in the first place, the same Ruby who became a permanent part of their lives.

        They wouldn’t trade her for anything, so Steve looked at Tony and nodded.

        “We will help you.” Steve decided. “But once we’re done dealing with Eternity, you will let go of Ruby.”

        “Let her live a normal life. You owe her that much. So break off the soul bond and you both go separate ways. You go back to being a full pledged guardian of the universe and Ruby goes back to being a teenager.” Tony added as he looked at the cosmic being with a determined expression that suggested no room for arguments.

        Infinity didn’t expect such a request from the humans.

        Nonetheless, she smiled sweetly, glad that someone would be looking after Ruby when she’s gone, **“I promise.”**

        And just like that, Stephen, Tony and Steve found themselves back in Ruby’s bedroom like nothing happened at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi lovelies, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and that I didn't confuse you with Ruby's background history.  I'm really sorry if I did! Let me know what you think! 
> 
> All the love from London. 
> 
> See you guys on the next chapter!


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